Cross Academy
by Authoress of the Midnight Moon
Summary: Ryoma Echizen, son of Nanjiro Echizen  one of the best hunters, along with his sister, Sakuno, attends Cross Academy. But strange things start to happen around and to Ryoma. The past refuses to rest and lost loves return. Thrill and TezuSaku and more
1. Chapter 1

This story idea doesn't belong to me, it belongs to fallenangel9413, prompt found here: .net/s/6087183/7/Ideas (Great idea by the way, thank you so much for allowing me to write this * bows* and for allowing me to change the pairings * bows *)

**Warnings:** Yaoi (Thrill pairing), possible future blood/gore scenes, and technically this isn't a warning but this is POT in the setting of Vampire Knight

**Longer Summary: **Ryoma Echizen has always lived in the mountains training under his father, ex-vampire slayer Nanjiro Echizen while his mother, Rinko, and sister, Sakuno Echizen, lived in the city. Ryoma and his father move back to the city and Ryoma attends the boarding school Cross Academy where there is a Day-a class of humans- and Night Class-a class made up of vampires. Within the Night Class a certain vampire catches his eye- Fuji Syusuke, resident sadist. Meanwhile little Sakuno seems to have her first crush...and on the Night Class Dorm Leader! This can't go well...can it?

**Disclaimer: **Prince of Tennis belongs to Takeshi Konomi, Vampire Knight belongs to Matsuri Hino, Story Idea belongs to fallenangel9413

A twelve-years-old boy tugged on the sleeves of his dark navy blue school uniform. He sighed and flicked a lock of his dark green-black hair out of his golden eyes. Staring at the mirror in front of him, the boy observed the person standing in front of him.

It was none other than the reflection of Ryoma Echizen.

Ryoma sighed and rubbed his eyes. He much rather still be sleeping up in the mountains where he grew up than being stuck down here in the bustling, smog-ridden city filled with annoying people.

"Home…" The word seemed foreign on his tongue and distant. No matter how times Ryoma read the definition to the word, he could never grasp him and Ryoma always wonder- should that make him sad?

Whether here or up in the mountains something always seemed off.

_Except for when you were with that kid…_

Ryoma immediately squashed the thought and glared at his reflection but he couldn't help but ponder the strange incident that had happened five years ago… Those strange eyes…the strange smile…and especially those strange words _he_ had spoken.

_Flashback_

"_Tou-san! Tou-san!" the small black haired boy chanted. He raced across the meadow plain to his father who was sleeping. The man was sleeping on a pile of giant rocks. A weird magazine with some girls on it (that seemed to be giggling up at him) covered his face and gentle fluttered whenever his dad snored. _

"_Tou-san!" the boy yelled louder and shook his father hard. He accidentally, or maybe not so accidentally, pushed too hard and man fell straight of the rocks._

"_OW! RYOMA!" Nanjiro yelled and got up while rubbing his sore back. "What do you need kid?" Ryoma pouted cutely and held out his racket._

"_Hurry up and play a game with me!" the boy called out. Nanjiro groaned and settled back down on top of the rocks. _

"_Go explore or something," Nanjiro muttered and soon feel back asleep. Ryoma sighed and turned to stomp off._

_He crossed his arms and glared at the ground and then the sky. He wanted badly to play tennis (Ryoma quickly had gotten addicted to it when his father showed him how to play) but he needed good opponents for the game to actually be fun._

_Ryoma tossed the green ball in his hand. His 7 year-olds mind began to churn up things he could do._

_One: Bother Tou-san more_

_Two: Go explore_

_Three: Burn Tou-san's magazines_

_Four: Train_

_Ryoma groaned and flopped back down. Was there nothing else to do up in the mountains? He grumbled and got up and began walking through the forest._

_The sun had already started to set and usually Nanjiro didn't allow Ryoma to go out at night. But he was still asleep so nothing could stop Ryoma today._

_The familiar dusty road seemed to grow longer and more ominous as night continued to fall. Ryoma shivered slightly in the evening wind and hugged himself to try and save his warmth._

_Glancing around Ryoma quickly gathered his location, about half a kilometer from the meadow, and then another kilometer from his cabin house. Ryoma pondered for a minute before deciding to continue walking forward._

_Seconds turned into minutes and soon those minutes added up to two hours. Ryoma paused and glanced around again. He could easily turn around and walk back home but he wasn't looking forward to discussing where he was with his baka Tou-san. He sighed and settled down at the base of a tree and stretched his neck._

_Ryoma sighed and gazed up at the sky._

"_Are you lost, little boy?"_

_Ryoma jumped up and glanced to the side. A man stood there wearing a trench coat and a scarf and he seemed innocent enough… to the eye. Ryoma almost choke on the vile aura surrounding the man._

"_If that's the case, then can I drink your blood?"_

_Ryoma's eyes widened and he stumbled back. He had suddenly glimpsed fangs prodding out of the man's mouth when he spoke! _

_Within a millisecond the man had grasped Ryoma by the shoulders and harshly pulled his head to gain access to Ryoma's neck._

"_Sto…!" Ryoma stuttered out in a fearful cry. _

Thwack!

Bam!

_Ryoma felt dizzy and light-headed but he quickly grasped the fact that he was free from the horrid man's clutches. He was kneeling down on the ground and then Ryoma slowly got up and gazed forward._

_A boy… with brown hair and sharp red glowing eyes…_

"_You're a disgrace to all vampires." The strong, clear, sharp voice echoed in Ryoma's ears._

_Ryoma blinked and he was able to focus on the image before him. The boy was holding the man by his neck… no… his hand was right through the man's neck just like a sword! Crimson blood flowed out in rivers and a scream filled with agony that would haunt Ryoma's coming dreams echoed out into the distilled air._

_The small kid could only stare blankly with wide eyes. Something strange crawled through his body. Was it fear or perhaps something else…?_

_The boy retracted his hand and the man fell to the ground in a pitiful pile. But the man quickly collected himself and hurriedly dashed away. The older boy turned to face Ryoma._

_The older boy had his hand rise, licking the remaining blood that stained his hand away._

"_Are you okay?" the soft voice asked. Sharp fangs glean underneath the moonlight._

_The boy lowered his hand and gracefully strode over to Ryoma. He raised his other hand and gently brushed a lock of Ryoma's hair away._

"_Y-y-yes," Ryoma stuttered. He inwardly cursed. Why was he acting like such a coward? And there was something about this boy… half of him was saying to run and the other half of Ryoma was saying to hang on to him. _

"_That's good." The taller boy closed his eyes and slid his face into a wide smile. "You should be careful where you wander at night, Ryoma Echizen." Ryoma's eyes went wide._

"_How did you know…?" The other boy gently pushed his finger against Ryoma's lips, silencing him._

"_That's a conversation for another time Ryoma-chan. Go home for the night isn't your domain nor is the darkness your land."_

_A suddenly wave of dizziness crashed over Ryoma and his eyes fluttered closed. His knees wobbled and gave way and he fell straight into the stranger's strong arms._

_~End Flashback~_

Ryoma shook his head and rid himself of the memories. He didn't need all of these lingering attachments to slow him down. Ryoma sighed and ran a hand through his silky hair.

"Ryoma! Hurry or you'll be late!" his mother called up to him.

"Hai!" Ryoma shouted back. Swinging his book bag over his shoulder, Ryoma exited his room and shut the doro firmly behind him. He quickly jumped down the stairs and landed with a small thump at the bottom.

"Eek…!" Sakuno jumped back and Ryoma gave her a bored glance. The girl immediately blush a deep tomato red and hides behind her mother.

"Ryoma!" his mother scolded. Ryoma rolled his eyes and began to mentally block his mother who continued to berate him on 'causing loud noises' and 'scaring his soft-hearted sister'. Doesn't she realize that Sakuno was right behind her?

"Yeah, yeah…" Ryoma muttered. His mother humphed and turned around to give one last adjustment on Sakuno's school uniform.

"Today is you two's first day of the school year. I want it to run smoothly," Rinko stated. "And that means I don't want any trouble and that means I better not seen _any_ reports or _any_ complaints. Especially you Ryoma since you're a prefect…"

_I didn't even want to be a guardian,_ Ryoma muttered darkly in his head.

Fidgeting, Sakuno whispered, "Um…We're going to…um…be late for school." Rinko blinked and glanced at the clock and gasped.

"You two hurry and start walking! You'll be late!"

And with that Rinko rushed out a flustered Sakuno and a disgruntled Ryoma. Nothing could go wrong right? After all, it was _just_ school…

Sitting in the headmistress's office with a bunch of knucklehead guardians was _not_ Ryoma's idea of 'fun'. He rather be sleeping in class right now- strike that, he much rather be sleeping in general. Not to mention the fact that one of the other guardians was lecturing everyone on their behavior and anyone could fall asleep just by listening to his boring voice.

"Quiet!" Immediately all the guardians snapped to attention to the headmistress, or Ryuzaki Sumire. Excluding Ryoma, they were five guardians-one sophomore, two junior, and two seniors. Ryoma yawned and mindlessly listened to Ryuzaki give her speech to the guardians.

"There is a special note I want to make to all of you." A pointed glance/glare was directed to Ryoma who lazily cocked an eyebrow in replied. "The Council of Slayers has demanded the Night Class to be watched. Though, the slayer will be incognito for the most part, the slayer will still be watching. I stress to all of you to make sure that this year goes extra smoothly since we all understand the concept of an one-time accident, but the Council doesn't."

"We understand Ryuzaki-sensei. But all of us have one question…" one of the senior guardians said. "About a freshman joining…After all isn't the rule that only sophomore and up can be a guardian?"

"I know, but Echizen here has special training. You can trust him, as do I," Ryuzaki simply stated. "All of you, except Echizen, are dismissed. Go to class, the teachers have already been notified that I was holding the prefects and guardians for a while." They nodded and left. Ryoma gazed straight into Ryuzaki's stern eyes.

"What is it?" Ryoma asked. Sliding over some papers, Ryuzaki explained quickly.

"As you know, the Night Class is quite special. They are entirely composed of vampires. Here are the profiles of all them, and a few you'll need to keep a look-out for. The two are Kikumaru Eiji and Fuji Shusuke, the first being more prone to losing control of his bloodlust and the latter being rather…troublemaking."

Ryoma scanned over the files quickly. He flipped through the file of the dorm head (a strict no nonsense person named Tezuka Kunimitsu), two sophomores named Momoshiro Takeshi and Kaidoh Kaoru (Ryoma's first impression was that he looked like a snake), an apparently kind vice-dorm head named Oishi Shuichiro, a bipolar Kawamura Takashi (seems to changes personality when going into a 'fighting mode' whether for sports or something else), Inui Sadaharu the creepy scientist, Kikumaru Eiji the overly hyper, and finally…

A choking sound came out of the young guardian's mouth. The smiling face below him looked just like the vampire boy he met all those years ago! Ryoma shook his head at Ryuzaki's questioning gaze and quickly composed himself. Taking a deep breath, Ryoma set the files down.

"Anything else?" Ryoma asked emotionlessly.

Ryuzaki sighed, "As you know I asked a slayer to do the 'observations' for the council."

"Don't tell me…" Ryoma muttered underneath his breath.

"I asked your father to do it. Even though he is in retirement, the council still holds his judgment as quite valuable since he was rather strong. There is one last thing I would like for you to note, the prefects that I set out earlier…they are not guardians. Cross Academy is rather large, bigger than originally anticipated so we added on extra prefects to help the guardians do the normal jobs so that they could do their real duties. And keep your position as a prefect to the minimum."

"Does that mean I don't have to wear the stupid badge all the time?" Ryoma asked. Ryuzaki's forehead popped a vein.

She, with gritted teeth, answered, "Sure, whatever. Now get back to class!" Ryoma rolled his eyes and strode out of the class-making sure to rip the badge of his sleeve right in front of the headmistress's eyes. Then he quickly shut the door behind him.

_Thwack!_

Ryoma smirked as he heard the sound of a pen hitting the door which would've made a direct hit to his forehead had he not shut the door in time. He cracked his neck and strode on down to his first class. Knowing that he was half an hour late, Ryoma briefly considered sneaking away to take a nap but decided against it.

His mother can get amazing mad and amazing scary when provoked correctly and getting a detention for playing hooky was one way of provoking her…greatly.

"Excuse me," Ryoma slid the door open. The teacher paused in her lecture and briefly nodded at Ryoma.

"Ah yes, Echizen-kun. Your seat is behind your sister. She'll help you find the passage we are on. Continuing…"

Ryoma silently slid into his seat. Sakuno blushed slightly at the prods from her classmates but never the less, helped Ryoma find the correct passage in the book. Ryoma, in turn, slid over the notes he had previously borrowed from her (to keep up in class he was home schooled by his dad and studied the notes Sakuno had taken in class). Sakuno gave a small smile before twisting back around to face front once again.

Ryoma mentally groaned when he saw the easy passage on English. Up in the mountains, his father also spoke in English half the time and instructed Ryoma to do the same so his English was quite up to date. Sadly, the same couldn't be said for the rest of his class who were evidently failing at every sentence.

Deciding that it was worth the risk, Ryoma put his head down and fell asleep. The bell would wake him up, or Sakuno would since she already knew of his tendency to sleep at every chance. They were siblings.

The first thing to penetrate is Ryoma's ears were the sharp trill shrieking of fangirls, not just any fangirls-_rabid_, _entirely insane_ fangirls. A small string of sympathy shot out from Ryoma's heart to the Night Class but just for a moment. He knew how it felt to be the target since just a while ago he had the misfortune to attract quite a few due to his debut during the tennis club. Ryoma snorted when he remembered the tennis club's first meeting. The idiot upperclassman was just asking to be smacked down.

"Make sure that the Night Class doesn't come in contact with any of the Day Class," a senior guardian muttered to Ryoma before walking off. The freshman guardian just blinked and slid off into the crowd.

The sun was sinking lower in the sky. It dipped down and the very edge of it touched the horizon. The tall gates that guarded the Night Class Dorm clanged opened and they walked over.

Ryoma glanced over his shoulder towards their direction. The Night Class was wearing their school uniform which was basically the same as the Day Class except for it was white lined with black. He honestly had to admit they were good-looking and he could understand why girls (or guys) would have a crush on them. But for it to escalate this high…Now that was beyond him. Don't these people have a smidge of pride or feel shame at all?

"TEZUKA-SAMA!"

"EIJI-SAMA, PLEASE LOOK AT ME!"

"I LOVE YOU!"

Ryoma quickly turned back the crowd and held out his arms and tried to push the massive crowd back. The fans were going crazy trying to get closer to their idol/idols. His stress and anger were sky-rocketing; he had heard that Sakuno had been persuaded to come along.

"Saa…what a lovely group we have here," a familiar voice asked. Managing to see out of the corner his eyes, Ryoma spotted Fuji Shusuke. Looking closer know, Ryoma could definitely see that the boy he saw all those years ago and this one could be the same person. Heck, even their voices sound the same! Not to mention that infuriating smile…

A red-haired boy (Ryoma recalled his name being Eiji or something like that…) bounced up and gave a wide grin to the fans. As soon as he waved, the crowd went even more hysterical and tried to push forward.

Ryoma gave his most lethal glare and thankfully some of the fans knew that they would lose a limb if they tried his patience. Unfortunately quite a few of the fans were oblivious to the danger and continued moving forward. Ryoma pushed hard and tried to get the crowd to go back again.

Ryoma sighed in relief when he noticed that none of the other class members tried to do anything. Two troublemakers were better than a full class of them. Annoyance shot up again when Fuji walked up towards the fan; a wider grin spread across his face.

A few of the fans pushed harder and Ryoma stumbled back a pace before managing to regain his footing.

"Eek..!" Ryoma's head automatically snapped into the direction of his sister's voice. They had never been that close, Ryoma only occasionally saw her when he and his father visited them during the holidays, but one of the reasons he actually took this stupid job was because of the fact Sakuno was rather timid. And her friend, Tomo-something, was a huge fan of the entire Night Class. Oh, there was Sakuno's friend, waving some sign that read something like "I love you" or whatever. And, not that he'll ever admit it, Ryoma felt a bit guilty for never being a good brother though that didn't mean he was some protective one.

Ryoma's glare turned from lethal to hell-freezing when he spotted one of the Night Class members turning around and helping Sakuno up.

Sakuno had already turned a bright cheery red as the Dorm Head helped her stand and quietly asked her if she was alright. Before she could stammer out a reply, the Vice Dorm Head had tapped on Tezuka's shoulder and gestured for them to hurry up. Tezuka nodded and gave one final glance at Sakuno before leaving her behind breathless and with her heart fluttering.

A vein popped out of Ryoma's head and he gritted his teeth. Not only was this stunt a direct violation against protocol but it had caused the fan girls to go even more cuckoo and they were pushing hard to gain the attention of one of the members-just like how Sakuno did. Ryoma's hate of fan girls grew even higher, especially now that, even though they weren't his fan girls, they were all over him. In addition, Ryoma thought that Tezuka held onto his sister's hand a little longer than necessary.

The door of the building that hosts their classrooms slammed shut as the Night Class safely made into it without any major incidents. All of the guardians sighed in relief, all the prefects sighed wistfully but were still a bit relieved and all the fangirls sighed in complete disappoint (except for Sakuno who was staring at her hand, completely dumbfounded).

Ryoma let his hair slip over his eyes and he turned and slipped out of the crowded area. He wasn't quite that used to being in such a large crowd.

Two, sharp, azure eyes watched the guardian walked away to complete his first day of patrolling. A wide grin that revealed sharp pointed teeth crossed the teen's face.

_Now this is interesting…_

The slender boy's head suddenly shot around and his muscles tensed. Ryoma suddenly felt a presence watching his back and he didn't like it one bit. His eyes quickly scanned the area but he didn't see any threats. Ryoma pursed his lips and slowly slid back into a regular pose and out of the battle stance.

His left hand twitched briefly over his belt where his weapon-Artemis-hung. Artemis was a long metal rod that was made to be anti-vampire though it wasn't that strong, especially against powerful vampires. It could snap into a smaller shape instead of its normal long form which made it easier to carry.

Ryoma scanned the area once more before turning and continuing walking to finish his round around the school grounds to make sure that no fans were sneaking around. At the thought of fans, Ryoma internally groaned as he wondered if every day would be just as bad.

Time continued rotating and life moved on from the first day. Ryoma simply followed its flow and didn't think much on it. The tennis club did support a few people who had strong enough skills to keep Ryoma from getting bored and quitting the club. The only thing he absolutely hated about the club was the fact that there were always fangirls surrounding the courts spouting some nonsense to one of the members-including him.

Up till now Ryoma didn't interact with any of the members of the Night Class, preferring to keep to himself and not involve himself with them any more than necessary. Truthfully he didn't care about them or this whole program about showing the world vampires and humans can live together in peace.

Ryoma internally rolled his eyes. He will admit to the fact that the program seemed to be one of the programs that go towards the whole 'greater good' what not junk. But it still doesn't have much to do with him. Ryoma was mostly bribed into being a guardian; he was offered two boxes of Ponta and his father did point at the fact that Sakuno seemed pretty involved with them.

Currently, Ryoma was inside his dorm room (to be able to do his job as a guardian/prefect Ryoma had decided to live at the school but he still went home on the weekends). He winced as he carefully wrapped a bandage around his arm which was still rather purple and yellow. The other day he and his dad managed to find time to have a quick spar and Nanjiro got a lucky hit in.

"Oi Echizen, aren't you on patrol today?" Ryoma's loud-mouthed idiot roommate Horio asked. Ryoma sometimes wanted to strangle him but usually Ryoma just ignored him.

"…"

"Hey! I'm talking to you!"

Ryoma gave him a blank-eyed stare that stated one thing- "you aren't worth my time".

Horio humphed and stumped off to bed while nursing his slightly wounded pride (he always did have to much ego).

Ryoma tightened the bandage around his throbbing bruise and slid Artemis back into its holster. He shrugged on his school jacket and then slipped out to do his patrols.

The moon had already risen above Ryoma's head. Small flashing specks that were stars glean brightly among the smooth black of the night sky. Ryoma was standing on top of a balcony to watch the grounds below. Suddenly he spotted two figures. Ryoma sighed and jumped down and walked over towards them.

His mouth was open to tell them to leave when he noticed Sakuno (the two were Sakuno and her friend) on the ground with her leg bleeding. Ryoma's left hand immediately went to Artemis.

"You two need to leave, now!" Ryoma order quickly. Tomoka (he finally remembered her name) glared and was about to start protesting when Ryoma whirled around and took out Artemis. He quickly slid into a defensive stance.

A red-eyed Eiji grinned at all three of them. He was standing with one hand in his pocket and the other arm hanging loosely at his side. Tomoka squealed and her hands flew to her mouth. His grin grew wider and then Eiji quickly charged at them.

Ryoma swung Artemis and blocked Eiji while managing to push him back. He twirled Artemis and tightened his grip on it. Tomoka began shrieking something about not hurting "Eiji-senpai" but Ryoma ignored her. Eiji growled and crouched down a bit to attack again when he suddenly froze.

The ever mysterious Fuji has arrived. An alluring grin played on his lips as he observed the scene before him. Tomoka immediately squealed as hearts twirled in her eyes.

Ryoma's eyes slightly narrowed as he stared at both of them, daring them to try and attack again. The tension in the air grew thicker and heavy that they could just taste it on the tip of their tongues.

"What is going on here?" The stern, sharp voice caused both Eiji and Fuji to snap their heads up. Standing a little ways away was Tezuka and Oishi, both with disapproving frowns on their face.

"T-T-Tezuka," Eiji stuttered since he knew that his dorm head was quite powerful, he was a pureblood. The purebloods could be considered vampires among vampires. They were vampires who could trace their lineage without finding any tainted by human blood. Purebloods also hold the most power out of all of the vampires, even the Vampire Council.

"Fuji, take Eiji back to the dorm, immediately," Tezuka ordered. His dark brown eyes flashed dangerously and Fuji complied without glancing at Ryoma again.

Ryoma still stood in his tense stance but shifted aside to let Oishi look at Sakuno's bleeding leg. He had read that Oishi had an outstanding record of blood tolerance and also had a 'mother hen' complex that caused him to worry over the smallest thing. He also continued standing in his stance because it enabled him to respond quickly to any attacks.

"The wound doesn't seem deep at all so I wouldn't worry too much about it," Oishi said. "But you really should get it checked soon to make sure nothing happens." Sakuno nodded and blushed deeply. Tomoka helped Sakuno up after Oishi used Sakuno's handkerchief to create a temporary bandage for the wound.

Wordlessly, Ryoma supported Sakuno on the other side and the three quickly made their way to the infirmary. Ryoma shivered as he had that creepy feeling from before, like they were eyes watching his every last move, daring him to do something.

The boy shook his head and then helped his sister the rest of the way to the infirmary deciding not think about it again.

Next Chapter will be up maybe tomorrow or when I finish the third chapter. Thank you for reading!


	2. Chapter 2

**Quick note**: The scene starts on the first night of class for them. It happens right after the first time Ryoma sees the Night Class

Thank you to **Fadey**,** XxTooyaLoxX **, **DixiePixie2011 **, and **chivin i **for reviewing/faving/alerting this story.

**Disclaimer:** The Story Idea, Prince of Tennis, and Vampire Knight do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners.

Oh and also I realized in the last chapter for some reason my line breaks didn't show up. I am terribly sorry for this as it might have caused some confusion. Hopefully my new one shows up...

( X X X X )

Small streaks of moonlight flashed through the window, briefly illuminating the eight boys within. They didn't need the light; after all they were creatures of the night.

"I still can't believe we have some slayer watching our backs," the violet-eyed boy named Momo complained. "We are actually doing them a favor by joining this program!"

Taka shrugged in replied and murmured, "Well…nothing ever is exactly free. But I did hear that quite a few more vampires wanted to join after seeing our success so far…"

"Fsshh… well there is not much to think on it. We can't do much about their decisions after all," Kaidoh grumbled. Momo slammed his hand down.

"Come on! There's always something we could do!" Momo exclaimed but deep down he knew that they couldn't really.

"Logically we should first make sure we are on our best behavior and second we should figure out who this slayer is. Ryuzaki-sensei refused to divulge anything," Inui stated.

"Since it's you Inui, I would say you already have a guess," Fuji piped up. Inui shrugged.

"I don't believe it's a current active member, instead I believe it's a retired but still fit. I concluded this due to the fact all the vampire slayers that are powerful enough, or in other words trusted enough, to do this mission are away on a mission or inactive." Inui shut his notebook closed. "The percentage of it being retired is approximately 77%."

"Hmm…" Fuji murmured, a thoughtful looking crossing his face. It then morphed into a more taunting, sadistic one. "Oh yes, I just remembered. Tezuka, there was something interesting I notice. That you were such a gentleman you helped a freshman girl up after she was pushed over."

Tezuka coughed and pushed his glasses further up his nose. "It's just proper etiquette Fuji, nothing more."

"Oh really….?" Fuji's grin widened.

"And what were you doing by walking up to the fans like that? You shouldn't play with fire that much," Tezuka retorted. "The slayer is still watching us…Though, if it is a friend of Ryuzaki-sensei and is retired…It's possibly Echizen Nanjiro is the slayer."

"Saa…" Fuji propped his chin up with his right hand. "Now that would be interesting…" His eyes flashed open for a brief moment to reveal sharp azure. "And would make more sense…"

"More sense on what Fujiko?" Eiji asked.

"Nothing…"

"And I also noticed that you were later than usual. What were doing? You disappeared for a brief moment. Where were you?" Eiji interrogated.

"It was strange how you vanished. Did something happen?" Oishi asked worriedly. His brow furrowed as he pondered the possibilities. Fuji just smiled his usual smile and sat down at his seat, moving away from the window.

Fuji was pondering the fact that the boy he saw, the newest guardian. He remembered meeting that boy up in the mountains after he, Tezuka, and Oishi went to talk to Nanjiro Echizen about the program. Nanjiro Echizen… Now he was a strange one. Fuji chuckled slightly as he remembered his antics.

_One of the strangest slayers I have ever met but not the strangest human_, Fuji thought. Echizen Nanjiro ran into all of eight them a few years ago but didn't move to kill them or even attempt to ignite any type of battle. Instead he just simply asked if they want to try living with humans and finally make peace. He described the program briefly and told them to go join it if they wished to before walking off.

When they finished debating it, they joined it seeing that there was no risk in doing so (and they were powerful enough to get out of it if they wanted to). Surprisingly, it was quite interesting and Eiji just absolutely adored all of the attention he received. Fuji instead enjoyed being mischievous and playing around, which gave Tezuka headaches which was a lovely added bonus.

What especially made Fuji happy was since they wanted to join the program, they went to converse with Echizen Nanjiro on the topic and Fuji was able to run into Echizen Ryoma. Fuji thought back to how stubborn the boy looked and how…innocent or vulnerable or perhaps a combination of both he seemed. Though, now he wasn't like that at all. Instead, the stubbornness had transferred into an undying strong will.

_I wonder if he found a lover yet…_The mere thought of the possibility that someone would've captured Ryoma's heart made him flare up. Fuji unconsciously clenched his hand into a fist.

Eiji, who's seat was to the left of Fuji, quickly dashed away to slid up next to Oishi. Oishi glanced Eiji with a questioning look but Eiji merely shook his head. Sitting next to an angered Fuji was severely dangerous and life-threatening.

Meanwhile, Tezuka was pondering about a few things. Firstly, the girl…Everything from her soft auburn hair down to her kind soft hearted chocolate brown eyes seemed to just captivate him. The way her scent composed of strawberries melting into the bright scent of sakuras and finally composing of tulips. Since she was there, Tezuka assumed that the girl was a fan but at the same time that couldn't be said about her. She wasn't like the rest, adoring over them. Though, she couldn't have been a guardian or a prefect.

And another thing was the slayer. Tezuka mentally sighed at the thought of him/her. The slayer probably was watching them and yet he couldn't sense anyone with ill intent towards any of the group… Unless you count the young guardian who was glaring daggers at him (was the girl his boyfriend…?). Tezuka's muscles tensed unconsciously though he couldn't fathom why.

And so both were left wondering about their questions…

The minutes turned into hours and the hours turned into days and nights and the days and nights turned into a week. Neither was much closer to finding out what they wanted to know. They couldn't ask the prefects; prefects were fan boys/girls as well and they didn't need them spamming out on them. The guardians didn't trust any member of the Night Class so they were no point in asking one of them.

Both were getting slightly irritated from being unable to find out about the person who held their interest. Even the headmistress was too busy to be asked.

Tezuka and Fuji didn't see Sakuno and Ryoma till they smelled the blood. Actually, Inui was one to first catch the scent but Eiji was the first to act under the night.

Within seconds, he was at the exit and rushing out without another thought but succumbing to his instincts. Tezuka and Fuji's eyes met just for a second, but that was all the time it was needed to send a message.

_Go after Eiji._

Fuji quickly obliged, having already catch whose scent it was (the girl from before) and he knew that Tezuka wished to protect her but Fuji was much fast than Tezuka. In addition, for a vampire (especially a pureblood) to be found in love with a human was quite scandalous among both worlds.

Another thing that should be noted was that Fuji was also a pureblood, but one of a lesser family, and his power was wind. The brunette vampire disappeared and quickly caught up to them.

Fuji slowed down when he spotted all of them. Ryoma had just blocked and pushed back Eiji and Fuji allowed a small prideful smile to creep over his face before it turned dead serious. Eiji was crouched, prepared to strike once again. After carefully placing a placid smile on his lips, Fuji stepped out of the shadows and met Eiji's eye.

Azure eyes slipped out and started glowing red around the edges.

_Touch him and die._

Eiji immediately stopped his charge, realizing the danger, and also realizing what he had just done. Even though he knew it was morally wrong to just go up and attack someone, Eiji still was craving badly for blood.

A sharp squeal penetrated Fuji's ears and Fuji closed his eyes again. The situation had been calmed but Ryoma still stayed tense, glaring at both of them. Before Fuji could say anything, Tezuka and Oishi also arrived, having gotten worried when the two of them did not return.

"What is going on here?" The two vampires snapped their heads up towards the arrivals direction. Eiji bowed his head while Fuji remained his usual self.

"T-T-Tezuka," Eiji stuttered.

Tezuka mentally sighed at the incident. This was bad since the slayer could decide from this incident that they were too dangerous. Also, Eiji had just proven that his blood lust was getting stronger even with the blood pills (the other half of the program was to try out special pills that could satisfy the diet of a vampire without actually having to drink blood, but it didn't exactly satisfy the cravings).

Tezuka's gaze turned sharper when he spotted the girl lying down injured. Reluctantly, he pulled his gaze away from the girl and dealt with the situation.

"Fuji, take Eiji back to the dorm immediately," Tezuka ordered and the two complied. A groan almost slipped past Tezuka's lips when he spotted the calculating/thoughtful look on Fuji's face- he was planning something. Usually, Fuji's plan gave Tezuka giant migraines.

Oishi quickly stepped over the girls with a worried look crossing his face. "The wound doesn't seem deep at all so I wouldn't worry too much about it. But you really should get it checked soon to make sure nothing happens."

The injured girl nodded and turned red once more when Oishi began to fix her handkerchief over the wound. Tezuka noted that the color suited her and he watched her shyly brushed a lock of her soft hair out of her wide innocent eyes.

"Thank you so much for your help senpais!" Tomoka exclaimed, a small flash of jealousy flared through her eyes but quickly disappeared. "Here Sakuno, let me help you to the infirmary." Ah, Sakuno, a good name for her. Tezuka whispered it underneath his breath but so quietly that even Oishi didn't hear. The word rings slightly on his tongue and leaves a sweet taste.

Then Tezuka shifted his glance over to the freshman guardian and was surprised slightly at the fact the guardian didn't immediately spit in their direction- heck, he didn't look that he cared about them at all. Tezuka recognized the stance; it was a defensive one that allowed him to move quickly in multiple directions if needed.

_He's been trained but question is who? And those eyes, the shape, the same as Echizen Nanjiro. _It was obvious the boy was trained. Tezuka closed his eyes briefly as the three walked away. He turned to Oishi.

"What is it?" Oishi asked.

Tezuka shook his head. It was probably best not to worry anybody yet.

( X X X X )

Tiredness and sadness penetrated Sakuno's heart. Not to mention the confusion she's been feeling on top of that for the past week and a half. She was so sick of everything-especially the secrets.

Normally, Sakuno was a very patient and timid and naïve girl who was ignorant of what was going on around her. But right now, the frustration had built up over the years. For years she has wondered why she never had a father guiding her or a brother to bicker with. For years she had wondered what they were doing up in the mountains.

And for years Sakuno has always wondered what big secret everyone seemed to be keeping from her. She saw the secret, meaningful glances that passed between her father and mother and she noticed the strange company that would sometimes come over to talk to her father, and sometimes her mother. Sakuno instead of feeling angry felt more frustrated and disappointed. Even though she had a weaker body she wasn't someone that wanted to be kicked out of everything.

_Am I that weak…? Have I not prove myself at all?_ Sakuno knew as soon as she asked herself that question the answer was yes. What was there that she had done that would warrant others trust to tell her supposedly important information?

She gripped her hand tighter as small tears came out of the corner of her eyes. Sakuno was hiding beneath a tree in the surrounding forest during the lunch period. The bright lush blue

Turning her head away, Sakuno just wished to leave for a moment, to breathe freely. Slowly, Sakuno stood up and began walking away.

_You shouldn't do this…_ she chastised herself. _You will just cause more trouble._ But somehow she couldn't stop her body from walking. Sakuno's feet continuing moving and soon she stood in front of the metal gate that separated the school from the lonely road that led to town.

Sakuno took a deep and gently tugged the gate opened and quickly slid out.

_I don't need to be given everything on a silver platter…_ The traitorous thought clouded the normally good girl's heart and she began running, racing, further and further away from the school.

( X X X X )

"Echizen Sakuno…?" the teacher looked up to where Sakuno usually sat to find it empty. "That's strange… Does anyone know where Echizen-chan is?" All of the students shook their heads and the teacher puckered her lips.

"It's possible she just went to the infirmary. Echizen-kun, would you please go check?" Ryoma silently stood up and waltzed out of the door while sighing. Sakuno has gotten in trouble once again…

"Echizen-san, what are you doing out here?" It was a prefect- one who was half-decent.

"Going to the infirmary to see if my sister is there," Ryoma replied curtly.

The prefect frowned, "I just came out of the infirmary myself. Nobody else was there." Ryoma paused and sighed/groaned.

"Great…" he muttered darkly. Ryoma turned around and changed his direction to the headmistress's office. He paused for a one moment to give a sharp thanks to the prefect.

In a few moments Ryoma knocked on the headmistress's door.

"Enter."

Ryoma opened the door to also see his idiot old man standing there was a lazy and bored look scrolled over his face. The younger Echizen sighed at the sight, knowing full well his father's lazy ways.

"What is it Ryoma-kun?" Ryuzaki asked. Internally, he rolled his eyes at the familiarity use by using his given name but ignored it for now.

"Sakuno has disappeared."

Nanjiro chocked and glanced up with a shocked expression.

"What the hell…?" Immediately, the ex-vampire hunter stood up and was just about to run out of the door if Ryuzaki hadn't grabbed him by his collar.

She snarled, "Honestly, I thought you would be smarter. Let's figure things out first before diving head first into things. Ryoma can you please explain."

"She didn't show up in class and wasn't in the infirmary. I peaked at the front gates; they're slightly opened. I conclude she had left," Ryoma stated blankly.

Ryuzaki sighed, "Go look for her in town. And Nanjiro," who had opened his mouth to protest, "don't you dare go after her. You are supposed to be observing the Night Class." Sulking, Nanjiro growled and sharply turned his head while his son nodded and turned to leave to investigate. Ryoma paused for a minute—he almost snapped at Nanjiro when he spotted his nose buried in another perverted magazine book.

"How bad exactly is the vampire activity in the town?" Ryoma asked.

Ryuzaki vaguely replied back, "Not too bad since they everyone knows the Night Class is here. Once in a while a Level E shows up but usually someone from the Night Class takes care of it…" She was focused on a rather interesting bit on someone's report.

Smirking, Ryoma exited. The young trained teen paused only briefly to check on Artemis's condition before slipping past through the front gates. Then, Ryoma began walking towards the next bus stop.

_Time to find my wayward sister…_

( X X X X )

Nanjiro never considered himself an overprotective parent. One who would want his children safe yes, but not those who monitor their children's every last move or those who watched sharply over their children as they did their homework. Heck, he didn't care what grades his children got-that was Rinko's job.

But when it came to the "vampire" business…Nanjiro believed he may get a little "out of hand". Nanjiro sighed and shook his head, no he got a lot out of hand. First off, when your wife gets attacked in a forest by a vampire and you weren't there-you turned quite protective. Second, one of your children has a weak body and can hardly fight while the other just stares blankly in the face of death.

All in all, Nanjiro decided the fact he turned over protective when it involved vampires was understandable.

"Remind me again why you _didn't_ send me to pick Sakuno up?" Nanjiro growled/whined out again.

Ryuzaki growled back, "_Because_the only way I was allowed to let you be the supervisor was if I swore to the Vampire Council that you would on campus during all school hours-whether Night or Day Class. Not to mention Ryoma can handle himself and probably won't give his daughter an earful on staying safe and just might REVEAL EVERYTHING TO HER."

Nanjiro flinched but refused to back down.

"I know the brat can TAKE CARE OF HIMSELF but what I don't get still is WHY I CAN'T SIMPLY GO MYSELF! I don't give a damn on what the Vampire Council says!"

"Well you just might give a damn on what _I_ say and what _I _say is that you are not going!" Not to mention the fact that she slammed her hand on the desk (breaking it neatly into two) could also indicate that she was going to have the last word in this conversation.

A quick sharp knock snapped them both out of their glaring match.

"Ryuzaki-sensei, may we come in?" a polite, albeit slightly timid, voice asked.

"Enter."

Takashi nervously walked in with Fuji calmly striding in after him.

"We have some…bad news…" Takashi explained.

Ryuzaki's eyes narrowed. "How bad?"

"Two Level Es," Fuji spoke up.

"Where?" Ryuzaki breathed out.

"In town…"

"WHAT?" Nanjiro yelped. Both vampires shot their graze straight at him. Takeshi gaped, stunned, while Fuji's grin stretched across his face.

"Aa… Echizen-san… Good to see you," Fuji snarkily greeted.

The ex-vampire slayer quickly stood with cat-shaped eyes that gleaned with sudden fierce protection.

"What do you mean that TWO Level Es have ENTERED THE TOWN?" Nanjiro shouted.

Ryuzaki smacked her old student on the head.

"Exactly what it means. Where are they and do you know of their strength?"

"Umm… They are in the eastern side of the city… It seems they are just normal Level Es… nothing too extraordinary thankfully…" Takeshi answered.

"What to do…?" Fuji asked. "Shall we go take of them for you sensei?" Sharp azure peaked out from beneath hiding eyelids.

"… I couldn't stop you if you wanted to…" Ryuzaki grumbled. "Blasted brats…"

"Well I'm going…" Nanjiro snarled.

"I SAID NO ALREADY!" Ryuzaki yelled.

"MY SON AND DAUGHTER ARE THERE! DO YOU EXPECT ME _NOT_ TO GO?" Nanjiro shouted back.

_Thump!_

The book hit its target with superb accuracy and Nanjiro tipped back before crashing into the floor. Takashi's eyes widened.

"Um… Ryuzaki-sensei? Should we take him to the infirmary?" Takeshi squeaked.

"Nah… Just leave him there… He'll wake soon. Just go take care of those Level E's…"

"Hai."

( X X X X )

Ryoma scratched his head as he scanned the town from his position on top of someone's roof top. He hadn't yet spot the familiar auburn haired girl. Sighing, Ryoma jumped down and cracked his neck.

"Where the heck could she be at…?" Ryoma muttered darkly to himself. Continuing walking, Ryoma glanced through the windows of stores and restaurants while keeping an eye on the streets. Unfortunately though, he still didn't see Sakuno anywhere.

Ryoma paused and stretched his shoulders before turning off the main street and going through a short alley into a less populated area before walking into what seems to be a deserted area. Multiple shops were boarded up and a dry wind that carried dust easily breezed along the empty road.

In the distant Ryoma easily spotted what seemed to be a bell/clock tower. Sighing he walked in that direction hoping to get a better view of the city.

_Bam!_

Quickly the prefect sprawled down the ground while unsheathing Artemis. Ryoma then stood up and back tracked.

Standing before him with glowing red eyes stood a blood thirsty _vampire_. Insanity covered the woman's eyes as her mouth was frozen in a permanent twisted smile, much different from the frustrating smile of a certain someone else…

Ryoma shook his head and rid himself of distraction; what only mattered now was defeating this vampire and finding Sakuno since there might be more. Fingers twitched and a steel staff blocked the Level E's incoming attacked.

Jerking his head back, Ryoma avoided her out stretched claw fingers and then kicked upwards with his left leg, pushing right. The woman shrieked and loosened her grip on his staff, giving Ryoma enough to pry her off.

"…STU-pid… Bo-o-oy," the woman hissed out with salvia dripping off her chin. Ryoma grimaced and slid back easily into a battle stance. Golden eyes taunted and dared the vampire to attack again.

Roaring, the woman suddenly froze and grinned even wider. In the distance a scream of pure fright could be heard and Ryoma gaped as he realized who had screamed.

_Sakuno!_

Taking advantage of Ryoma's slip in concentration, the woman charged once again with mouth opened and fanged teeth out-ready to suck his very life out. Ryoma froze for a moment as sudden flashes of the very same fangs from long ago appeared in his mind.

"Saa…What do you think you're doing?"

A sharp wind slammed straight into the Level E's stomach, knocking her flat out on her back.

Ryoma blinked and his eyes widened silently as he spotted Fuji right in front of him, appearing only a second earlier. The wave of déjà vu over powered Ryoma but he quickly recomposed himself.

"What are you doing here?" Ryoma asked bluntly. Fuji glanced at him before merely shrugging and turning back to the vampire.

"Sadly for you," Fuji stated, "you encroached on someone else's territory. Not to mention, you've been stirring up a lot of trouble haven't you? And worst of all…" Fuji trailed off as his eyes made a brief appearance but instead of azure blue, they were harsh glowing crimson. Turning around, the elder boy gently slipped his pale hand over the younger one's eyes.

"Die."

Biting his lower lip, Ryoma forced himself not to react as he heard the Level E screamed before being ripped to shreds by Fuji's winds. Even though he had been trained since the beginning to 'kill', death still was a sore subject for him and not a very comfortable one. Only a truly evil person took real pleasure in ending someone else's life-their dreams, hopes, wishes, _essence_.

"Are you alright Ryoma-kun?" Fuji asked quietly as he took his hand away from Ryoma's eyes. Ryoma refused to show any emotions in front of him and sharply turned his head away from Fuji's face.

"I'm fine…" Suddenly Ryoma's eyes went wide and he whirled around.

"Don't worry. Tezuka should be…finished… with the other by now."

"What are you doing here in the first place?" Ryoma demanded.

Fuji absently said, "Taking care of the Level E's. What else could it be Ryoma-_chan_?"

"Don't call me 'chan'!" Ryoma snapped.

"Why not?" Fuji softly pushed back a lock of Ryoma's green black hair and tucked it behind his hair. Ryoma slapped his hand away.

"I'm not some stupid weak little girl," Ryoma grumbled.

"Aa…but you're just cute like one," Fuji murmured. Beet red, Ryoma immediately stepped away from the 'pervert'.

"S-s-shut up!" Ryoma stuttered. A wicked grin flashed and Fuji stepped even closer to Ryoma causing him to back up into the wall. With both arms, Fuji trapped Ryoma against the wall.

Taunting lips leaned closer to trembling ones…

( X X X X )

Thank you for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

Hi! Sorry about doing a week update after updating chapter 2 the next day but I was on Spring Break so... Anyways thank you for your reviews! Oh and there is a little important bit on the bottom...

**Thank you to**: MintLeafeon , AishiteruAkumaSama , aNiMeLoVeRs21 , kakita101 , Fadey , Huginn et Muninn , Midori-Emmi , Yokuseithehedgehog , Tsubame0104 , EmpressMiaka , Collector-of-Things , Lilela , Honeymonkey101, Beccann , DaPurpleDino , akitty , lovestuck, and Bright Yellow Bumblebee for review/story alerting/faving this story.

(Whew... that was long and so **Thank You** so much once again :D)

**Disclaimer:** The Story Idea, Prince of Tennis, and Vampire Knight do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners.

( X X X X X )

"Ne…Ryo-chan…what are _you_ doing here? I thought you were still up in the mountains being protected by your dad…" Fuji's breath gentle washed over Ryoma's face causing him to turn even redder.

"I don't see how that's any of your business," Ryoma shot back. His golden eyes still showing the defying strong will that made Ryoma, Ryoma.

"Oh really?" Fuji murmured. His head turned to the side so his cheek grazed against his trapped victim. Whispering in the other's ear, Fuji stated: "It is my business if it is yours Ryo-chan. Don't you understand that?"

Ryoma shivered as he bit his lower lip. He desperately tried hard to keep up his strong façade. There was no way in hell did he like Fuji!

Strong arms wrapped around his slim waist and Ryoma's eyes widened his shock.

"Don't get caught up in vampire business too much Ryo-chan. You'll only get hurt." With those final words Fuji vanished leaving behind a dumbfounded boy with a confused heart.

Sakuno never in her entire life felt so…_terrified_, absolutely scared beyond the point of _common sense_. Just a while ago she was simply helping a small boy she had spotted. The boy had lost his red balloon and it had drifted up to be stuck in a tree. So naturally the sweet little Sakuno would grab the balloon and hand it back to the boy.

She didn't want the boy to suddenly stare up with her crazy eyes and try to _suck her blood_!

"T-T-T-Thirsty!" the boy yelled behind her in a raspy voice. Terrified beyond her wits Sakuno couldn't even scream. Luckily for her, her body was already moving automatically and she was running as far away as she could.

Tears slid down her face as her shoulders shook. Sakuno's breath came out in gasps as her chest tightened and burned. Through her tears she spotted a door up ahead and opened it before slamming it shut behind her.

"B-B-Blood!" the boy shouted behind her as he rattled and slammed against the door while Sakuno ran up the flights of stairs to the top. She slammed the door shut again and glance widely around the room. Flashes of sunlight blinded her eyes.

_I…I…I don't want to die! No…! NO! NO! NO! NO!_ Sakuno screamed in her head. Hands reached out and grabbed a random piece of wood that was stocked in a pile on the corner of the small circular room.

The walls seemed to crush down on her as her breathing drew more ragged and echoed throughout the room. The only other sound besides her heart that Sakuno could hear was the thudding steps of the boy as he came closer…and closer…

Fingers clenched the board tightly as Sakuno shakily held it in front of her.

"BLOOD!" the boy screamed as he burst through the window behind her. Catching Sakuno by surprised she screamed and the piece of wood slid across the floor as it was knocked out of her hand. Tears flew harder and harder as the fear grew even larger.

_I'm going to die. _

The door behind her flew off the hinges and open. The vampire boy froze in his tracks as his bloodthirsty eyes grew wide.

A tall slender but still muscular teen walked through. His dark hair framed his pale face as stern gray eyes stared coldly at the small boy who cowered immediately underneath the sharp gaze.

"A...a…a…" the boy whimpered as he slid backwards in fear.

"Tezuka-senpai…" Sakuno breathed.

"Close your eyes."

A knot of fear of what he was going to do settled in Sakuno's stomach. Quickly shutting her eyes, Sakuno wished she wasn't here.

"…Suffer for your sins…"

Sakuno jerked as she heard the small boy screamed as he was killed.

Her wide brown eyes stared blankly ahead of her as her fingers shook. Sakuno grabbed her heart and screwed her eyes shut, trying hard to block the terrifying images.

"Are you alright?" Tezuka asked curtly but with a soft undertone. Sakuno shook her head and didn't answer in fear she would break down sobbing.

A strong hand griped her shoulder to give her reassuring comfort. Blinking, Sakuno glanced up at Tezuka who gave her a quick small smile.

"Wha….What was…that?" Sakuno asked while shivering.

"I," Tezuka answered, "can't tell you that. It's something your parents will explain." Very gently, Tezuka led the distraught girl away and down the stairs. Sakuno fumbled slightly but Tezuka's strong hand continued leading her down.

"T-t-thank you… Tezuka-senpai," Sakuno murmured shyly and when Tezuka glanced down at her, Sakuno swore her heart skipped a beat. Those gray eyes just seemed… Sakuno turned into a cheery red color and stared down at the ground while clenching her fingers tightly. Her chest hurt so much… the blood pounding in her ears grew louder and louder…

"Your welcome."

The reply was so quiet that Sakuno doubted she heard it in the first place but still she kept the words close to her heart and a small smile appeared on her face. The two walked in comfortable silence back the waiting car on the street.

"Tezuka!" Oishi called out in relief. He strode up and glanced down at Sakuno. "Are you alright? You aren't hurt are you?"

"I-I-I'm fine s-s-senpai," Sakuno stuttered. Oishi breathed a sigh of relief and he glanced at Tezuka quickly who gave a sharp nod in reply. Sakuno frowned slightly when she saw that-wondering what it could mean but pushed it to the side. After all…Tezuka-senpai did just save her…

"Where's Fuji?" Tezuka asked.

"Eh…he went to take care of the…other…and hasn't come back yet…" Oishi answered hesitantly. Tezuka sighed.

"And…?"

"It just so happens that _his_ son is there as well…."

"Aa."

"Umm… Senpai?" Sakuno hesitantly asked. "I can just go home now…" Oishi immediately shook his head.

"Allow us to escort you home Hime-sama," Oishi earnestly stated with a kind smile. Sakuno blushed hard at the nick name of 'princess'.

"But…!" Sakuno protested. "I don't want to trouble you more…!" And she wanted to figure out what that…boy…who attacked her really was. Sakuno shivered and grabbed her wrist where the boy had grabbed her and almost _bite her_. Oishi though noticed.

"Were you hurt there? Do you have a cut?" Oishi fussed. Sakuno gently pulled back her wrist and to her surprise find it throbbing red with a few streaks of yellow and purple. To her it didn't hurt at all.

"It's fine!" Sakuno stated as she tried to push her sleeve down again but Oishi insisted and began to wrap a bandage he got out of the car around it.

"It looks swollen and is possibly sprain but I don't believe it to be broken…" Oishi mumbled as he wrapped the bandage tight around it.

"Saa…What do we have here?"

Sakuno jumped and she spotted a brown haired boy who appeared right behind her and Tezuka.

Tezuka sighed, "Fuji…"

Fuji's lips twisted into a sadistic grin as he turned his head from Sakuno and Oishi to Tezuka. "Hmmm…." Glancing at Tezuka, he gave a slight nod before walking over to the car and sliding in. Oishi finished wrapping Sakuno's hand in a bandage and walked into the car himself with Tezuka who escorted Sakuno in.

_Something is going on…_Sakuno blankly thought as the car drove off. Unknowing to her she was the only human in the car.

"Not to mention the fact Nanji-kun has run off doing who knows what…" his mother grumbled but she quickly recomposed herself and went back to tending to Sakuno who was trying to reassure her mother that was completely fine. Obviously, she wasn't doing a very good job since Sakuno was forced to lie down in bed and not get up.

Ryoma sat on his bed while staring up at the ceiling with unfocused eyes. Confusion flickered across his face as he racked his hand through his hair. Sighing, Ryoma shifted and curled on the bed in a tight ball.

Through the wall separating his room from Sakuno's, he could hear his mother fussing. Closing his eyes, Ryoma vaguely wondered what it would be like for someone to worry about him.

"Idiot…" he whispered softly. He didn't anybody worrying about him and he didn't want anyone to worry about him! …Right…? Ryoma sighed and flicked a piece of his hair out of his eyes and turned to look out the window.

_Sunset_…Ryoma thought. _I should go back…but then again why should I? It's not like I'm on duty or anything._

Alone in his room, Ryoma could drop his guard and stop showing only the emotionless mask that he showed everyone else. Golden eyes slowly closed and Ryoma fell sound asleep.

Sakuno stared out the window as her mother stared into her hands. Biting her lip, Sakuno considered over what to do. The overwhelming shock of the truth severely stunned her not to mention scared her.

"When were you…?"

"We were planning to tell you when you were 18, when you were going to graduate," Rinko replied and she shivered. "I didn't want to…but your father thought it would be best to eventually tell you to warn you."

"Warn me against the ones that attacked me…?" Sakuno whispered while hugging herself.

"Yes. They are called 'Level E's'. They are vampires but they have lost control of their blood thirst. In other words, Level E is when a vampire disappears into a berserk state," Rinko explained. "The vampires of the Night Class are just normal ones…well as normal as vampires can get."

"…Oh…" Sakuno whispered.

"I'm sorry Sakuno…" her mother whispered before reaching out and squeezing Sakuno's shoulder. "I just didn't want you to get hurt…like me…"

"Kaa-san! What do you mean?" Sakuno asked, startled.

"It happened a long time ago… before you were born I was attacked by a Level E in the forest…" Rinko whispered before quickly standing up. "Get some sleep Sakuno. If you want I'll write a note so you can skip school tomorrow."

Sakuno watched with sad eyes as her mother left to leave her alone in the room. Resting her head back against the wall, Sakuno wondered what she was going to do. Naturally she would keep the secret of them being vampires to herself but…How could she face them without seeing fangs and red eyes?

"Tezuka-senpai…" Sakuno mumbled. The way he confidently took care of the Level E and also seemed so calm and professional…unlike her the flustering klutz… Placing a hand over her eyes, Sakuno wondered if it really did matter.

_They, even though aren't human, are still beings…_

Did it really make a difference? Did it really change the fact that Oishi-senpai was nice and worried over everyone? Did it really change Eiji-senpai's bounciness and hyperness? Did it really change the fact that she had a crush on Tezuka-senpai?

The back of Sakuno's neck, her cheeks, and ears all turned bright red as she admit it herself. A crush on a vampire…how…pathetic? Ridiculous? Stupid? Naïve?

Sakuno didn't know but right now…she suddenly found herself not caring… Hugging her pillow tight in her arms Sakuno gave a small smile.

Right now, the only thing she cared about was remembering that small fragment of a smile that danced across Tezuka-senpai's face. That sweet smile…that lifted her heart.

"Nothing has changed except I'm not in the dark anymore…" Sakuno stated to herself confidently but immediately her courage vanished. "No…things have changed…_everything _has changed."

She was terrified out of her wits; terrified of the fact that her crush was a vampire and _needed blood to live_ and terrified of the fact that her heart _still called out to him_. The same fear that Sakuno held when running away from the small boy uncurled again in her chest.

"I wish…" a tear dripped out of the corner of her eye. "That for once I can control my heart."

Quietly she let the tears to continue to fall. Whether she was crying out of sorrow and self-pity or was she crying to let out everything was something Sakuno still didn't know and didn't care. She just needed to cry.

Tezuka held his head buried his hands with his elbows on top of his desk. The teacher had yet to arrive and Tezuka secretly was wishing she would hurry up. He badly needed a distraction.

The way Sakuno's eyes held so much innocence, so much _purity_ made his heat beat strangely.

_Do you even have a heart? _a small voice asked.

Logically and scientifically yes he did have a heart but figuratively did he really? All of them were vampires or as the humans called them 'monsters'. Tezuka sighed. That description didn't fit. He knew his classmates (cough friends cough) and they, even though were quite eccentric, were just normal people.

Though of course not human.

"Captain, are you all right?" Momo asked curiously.

Aa, that nickname. The group somehow started calling him 'captain' out of the blue. Tezuka considered it probably due to the fact he 'lead' the entire group and could be seen as the captain. Truthfully, he secretly liked the name, it made him feel that much closer to everyone.

He answered, "I'm fine Momo."

"Are you sure, Tezuka?" Oishi asked worriedly.

"Saa…could it be your heart?" Fuji teasingly asked causing Eiji to fall out of his chair.

"WHAT?" Eiji yelped. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN CAPTAIN HAS A CRUSH?"

"…" Tezuka glared at Fuji who smirked in replied.

"After all you were the knight in shining armor when you saved that girl from the big bad Level E," Fuji continued after a pause.

Momo blinked. "Wha…?"

"Wait… Fuji…what were you doing?" Tezuka asked, remembering that Fuji had taken much longer than needed to take care of a Level E.

"Saa…me? I was just visiting a rather interesting little boy."

"Eh? Who?" Eiji asked while jumping up and down.

"Not telling," Fuji sang.

"Aw~! Come on Fujiko!" Eiji whined.

Fuji shook his head and made a gesture of zipping his lips which caused Eiji to go and sulk to Oishi. Chuckling, the resident sadist pushed a lock of his brown hair behind his ear before turning to stare back out the window with a wistful look in his eyes…not that anyway saw since Fuji's eyes were shut tight.

"R-R-Ryoma-kun?" Sakuno asked in nervous voice. She was hovering in the doorway with a desperate expression drifting across her face.

Ryoma asked, "What is it?"

"Umm… Can I talk to you?"

"About what…?" The suspicion was clear in his voice as he narrowed his eyes at Sakuno who bowed her head low in response.

"About the…Night Class…and vampires…" Sakuno whispered in a deathly quiet voice. Sighing Ryoma nodded and sat on the edge of his bed.

"What do you need?" Ryoma asked. Turning her head Sakuno fidgeted before sitting down carefully at her brother's desk. Then she finally stared in the other's eyes fully and asked.

"Do you really think vampires are bad?"

To say the question didn't surprise Ryoma would be underestimating him. He could understand the conflict Sakuno is going through but at the same time to just openly ask right off the bat…It changed his mental image of his sister into a slightly better one thought she still needed to cut her hair…

"Nope," Ryoma answered curtly. "It's just what idiots like the Slayer's Council think."

"Slayer's Council?"

Sighing and rolling his eyes Ryoma explained. "Vampire Slayers. There exists a list of vampires to be exterminated by the vampire slayers. The people who basically rule all of the slayers are the Slayer's Council."

"Oh…"

An awkward silence passed between the two and Sakuno began to fidget again.

"Ryoma-kun… Um… About the Night Class…"

"They are testing blood tablets that substitute human blood," Ryoma explained while leaning back on his bed with his hands behind his head. Sakuno's tense muscle began to relax a bit when she saw her brother relaxing.

"Why?"

"Who knows…? Biggest reason is they want to live 'peacefully' with humans." Ryoma snorted. "In my opinion most of them probably just want to joke off or play or something…" A certain brunette came to mind with his teasing and taunting voice not to mention his file which read he enjoyed playing sadistic games with everyone…

"Umm… About the…relationship between vampires and humans…" This vexed and puzzled him a bit. Frowning Ryoma pondered why she was asking that before answering. Then it hit him. A light sigh passed through his lips as he sat up again and stared at the reddened Sakuno.

"You have a crush on one of them," Ryoma flatly stated.

"N-n-n-no!" Sakuno stuttered as she jumped back but the fact she turned redder spoke volumes to Ryoma.

"Normally relationships are like those are considered 'forbidden' but… It depends really on who you have a crush on. If it is a pureblood you pretty much can give up." The brief thought and question of why he was being…nicer to Sakuno rose up in his mind but he shot it down. Probably his mother's influence.

"Pureblood?"

"Vampires who can trace his back his lineage for generations without finding it tainted by humans…"

"Is…Tezuka-senpai one?"

"Yup."

"O-o-oh…" Sakuno murmured. So that was who Sakuno was crushing on… Ryoma ran his hand through his hair.

"Well…you're not the only one…" he muttered darkly.

"What?" Sakuno squeaked and this time she did fall off her chair. "What do you mean Ryoma-kun?"

Ryoma didn't answer as he sharply helped Sakuno up. Taking a deep breath he briefly considered telling the truth…before deciding against it.

"It's nothing. I'm going out…" Ryoma walked towards his door with thoughts of doing a few training exercises clouding his mind, blocking the other annoying little thoughts that have been bugging him.

Sakuno stated quickly before she lost her courage, "You can tell me things Ryoma-kun. You're my brother." Biting her lip Sakuno patiently waited for the sarcastic and/or biting reply that would tell her to shove off and bug someone else.

"I know." The voice seemed more…fragile and soft as if the words would break while still being form within the mouth.

Sakuno stared up at her brother as he placed his head against the door frame with his eyes screwed shut. Pale fingers clenching tightly to the frame clearly showed the conflict within him just about to burst. Steeling herself Sakuno gently placed her hand on Ryoma's shoulder and squeezed it.

"I-I-I'm sure it-t-t is not-t-t t-t-that bad," Sakuno stuttered but she gave a soft smile and spoke the next words confidently. "I'm not going to judge you, I swear."

"Fuji Syusuke," Ryoma finally stated but he didn't move from his position. "He saved me from a Level E a few years ago… I…"

Too many confusing emotions have inflicted themselves upon the two teens and they both realized that. With that thought, Sakuno wrapped her arms around Ryoma's waist and buried her face in his back while sobbing quietly. He was a trained Vampire Slayer and could survive the world of the vampires but she was just a weak human. What place did she have there?

His fingers tightened its hold on the doorframe and Ryoma took a deep breath and let his sister sob. Remaining emotionless lately comes easier and easier till it was finally simply a habit that he has. Knowing it was unhealthy didn't disturb Ryoma much.

"Sakuno."

Immediately she jumped back while furiously wiping away the tears that refused to budge and continued to fall.

"I'm sorry! I just…"

"Don't worry too much on it," Ryoma whispered and he stalked out of his room.

( X X X X X )

… _Yup many of you probably are going to kill me for not making them kiss (I read your reviews after finishing up to here) so… I'm going to add in this bit, hope you like it! _

( X X X X X )

Fixing his gaze on the green ball and his red racket Ryoma continued practicing/polishing his tennis skills in the quiet empty court. It was late, about 11 pm and Ryoma had walked back (yes the entire way) to school since he needed the time to think about a few things. Naturally he left a note for his mom so she wouldn't freak out and send the entire police force after him.

Ryoma's lips twitched slightly at how it took him an hour to call her down when he informed her that Sakuno had gone missing. Though Rinko can be quite scary, (terrifying, horrifying, the most frightening person on the _entire_ planet, etc.) it was a bit fun to watch her freak out over _other_ people.

"Saa… you play tennis?" asked a way too familiar voice. Growling Ryoma glared daggers at the intruder.

Walking into the faint light from the lamps that were along side the outside of the tennis court, two azure eyes were illuminated. A twitching grin that was threatening to break greeted Ryoma calmly.

"What are you doing here?" Ryoma demanded bluntly.

"Tsk, you keep asking me what _I am _doing but I'm wondering what _you're_ doing," Fuji slyly replied.

"I'm practicing," Ryoma answered through gritted teeth.

"Hmmm…" Fuji pursed his lips. "Why don't we make a little bet?"

Every instinct within Ryoma yelled for him not to but his pride urged him to continue. Obviously his pride won out.

"What bet?" Ryoma questioned.

Pausing, Fuji let the answer roll through his mouth before answering, "I win, you give me something. I lose, I give you something. Maybe some…answers?"

This really caused Ryoma to reconsider due to the fact that Fuji seemed like the type who would _never_ budge answers. Unless he was pretty confident that he could win… Ryoma pounded and smash the thought. He was going to win, no matter what.

"Deal."

( X X X X X )

Panting Ryoma gulped down the rest of his water bottle.

"Well that makes it my win doesn't it Ryoma-chan?"

Clenching the bottle tightly Ryoma faced the brunette with defying fire in his eyes. Unfortunately Fuji had somehow managed to win (even after Ryoma found a way around those counters) with 7 games to 6.

Sighing, Ryoma reluctantly agreed. "A deal is a deal. What do you want?"

"Hmmm…"

From what knowledge Ryoma did have on him, he guessed that Fuji already had a perfect idea of what he wanted from Ryoma. Considering the fact that Fuji baited him in with information it was mostly likely the questions would border along the fact why he was here and possible a few things on his dad.

"I want…" Fuji walked casually over to Ryoma and leaned close to his face. "A kiss."

"Wha?" Ryoma quickly backed away but Fuji grabbed him by the shoulders.

Soft lips gentle brush against Ryoma's and he was completely stunned frozen. Slowly the younger boy hesitantly pressed his lips back. The elder boy smirked briefly before leaning deeper into the kiss and wrapping his arms firmly around Ryoma.

_He tastes like the wind and rain…So fresh like breathing after suffocating for so long_, Ryoma blankly thought as his eyes closed and he clutched the front of Fuji's shirt tightly.

Finally breaking the kiss Fuji rested his lips against Ryoma's forehead and pulled back. Ryoma almost, _almost_, pouted but instead kept a blank face though his face was still flushed. And no way was Fuji going to stand for that. Smirking he whispered quietly into Ryoma's ear.

"You tasted so lovely Ryo-chan. Just like honey but bittersweet at the same time." Fuji licked his lips causing Ryoma to turn a deeper shade of red. "It was like a lovely little flower."

"S-s-shut up!" Ryoma yelled and he pushed away from Fuji. Chuckling, the now closed-eye boy shook his head.

"See you later Ryo-chan," Fuji murmured and then he was just gone. Ryoma wrapped his arms tightly around himself unconsciously. Sighing Ryoma packed up his racket and exited the court.

But as Ryoma left, he gently touched his lips. A lazy breeze past by and he could recall the taste of Fuji's lips on his.

( X X X X X )

I hope that's enough for all of you who wanted a kiss…

Oh, and I got a rather interesting question from a reviewer (Midori-Emmi) who wanted to know if I'm going to add any of the other schools. So far I'm planning to add Rikkaidai in the future chapters (some how in my brain they already have a role...). If any of you want other schools involve and any other pairings involving those others schools-just tell me in a review! Oh, and probably mention if you want them human or vampire or vampire slayer. I have already been requested for Hyotei to bee added in as comrades and Higa as the enemy (plus I can see it easily). Till next time, thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

This is where I tried to put more plot in. Hope you like it. And yes, the issue with Tezuka and Fuji being 'purebloods' while Ryoma and Sakuno are human will be solved. Can anyone guess how…?

( X X X X X )

"_It's your choice…"_

"_Please don't!"_

"_I have to mother."_

"_If Ryoma-kun is going to do it… Then I can to!"_

"_It's for the good of everyone, dear."_

"_This is my decision and yours Sakuno as well. I'm going to do it…the experiment."_

"_No! Not both my children!"_

_Bang!_

"_You're doing it whether you want to or not."_

As the screams started, Ryoma shot up in bed. He could still feel the ringing echoing within his ears. Rubbing his ears, he glanced at the clock which read that it was about 4 a.m. in the morning, much too early to be awake. With a sigh, Ryoma reluctantly slid out of bed and dressed for the day.

Snoring from Horio's side drifted over and caused Ryoma to roll his eyes. Although he did sleep deeply, he wasn't that _noisy_, not to mention _obnoxious_. After one final stretch, Ryoma exited the room and slowly but silently crept out of the dorm. A hand once again unconsciously went up and touched his lips as he remembered what happened last night…

_My first kiss…_

Shaking his head quickly, Ryoma rid himself of those thoughts. Lately, he's been having too much of these 'romantic' and 'fluffy' and just-out-of-the ordinary thoughts. He should be more focused on things like _training_, _tennis_, and _sleeping_.

But at the same time Ryoma found himself remembering how intriguing and alluring _he_ was and not to mention the way his lips…

_NO! NO! NO!_

Squash thought after thought about _him_, Ryoma still found himself going straight back to the brunette. A light snort of disgust fell off his lips as he aimlessly traveled through the forest. Finally, Ryoma found himself instead of focusing on _it_ and focusing on his dream.

Ever since Ryoma arrived in this city random nightmares/dreams have been invading his sleep…

With each one creepier than the last…

And it annoyed the crap out of him.

"Ryoma!"

_Smack!_

"Ryyyooomaaaa!" Nanjiro whined. "That was bloody mean brat."

"Shut up idiot old man," Ryoma shot back evenly. Rolling his eyes, Ryoma filed away his previous train of thought; he'll think about it another time. He didn't believe it to be that important after all. Dreams are stupid.

"… It's strange, a child's first crush isn't it?" Nanjiro asked, serious for once surprisingly.

Ryoma huffed, "I have no clue what you are talking about."

A lazy perverted grin scrolled across Nanjiro's face.

"Oh really?" he asked slyly. "Did you hear about little Sakuno who fell in love with someone just out of her reach? After all vampires and humans aren't meant to be together."

_Bam!_

Nanjiro froze as the rock clattered down to the ground leaving behind a sharp huge mark on a tree. Glaring, he sat up from his lazed out lying position and stared intently at Ryoma.

"So… It was you and that pureblood I saw."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Ryoma curtly replied though his muscles continued to tremble slightly.

Nanjiro sighed, "Troublesome brat…"

"Just shut up!" Fury overrode Ryoma's mind but what overrode his heart was sickening hurt and want... Want to be near Fuji... Want to have his love... The want of having his love acknowledge!

"People really can't control who they fall in love with."

_Bam!_

This time Nanjiro didn't react to the rock though he made sure that it wasn't going to fly anywhere near him- Ryoma can throw _hard_ and thus it _hurt…_like _hell_. He looked over at Ryoma and examined him, nothing how there were now dark purple shadows underneath his eyes. In addition there was something that seemed to be keeping him on edge… but it could be from his little crush. A slow grin came across Nanjiro's face as he recalled the little image he saw yesterday.

The little brat was being _kissed_ by the brown-haired pureblood and it was _on the lips_. Unfortunately, Nanjiro didn't have a camera on him at that time or else he would have been taking pictures like no tomorrow. He really needed some blackmail on his cocky son~!

"Oh brat," Nanjiro lazily began.

Ryoma glanced at him but didn't say anything. His eyes speaking volumes-_don't piss me off_.

Continuing, he said as casually as possibly, "Have you been having weird dreams or flashes?"

"…"

_How...?_

"You have…Great…" Nanjiro muttered darkly while slinging an arm over his eyes and flopping back down.

"You're hiding something," Ryoma flatly stated. After standing up, Ryoma stood over Nanjiro while glaring at him. "What is it?" There was no way that Ryoma was letting Nanjiro escape while hiding things from him (unless it had to do with his dad's pervertedness).

"…Word of advice-don't try to remember. Oh, and we have to report to the Slayer's Council today." Nanjiro stood up and walked back into the building vanishing off to who knows what.

Groaning Ryoma sat back down underneath a tree with his head buried into his hands. Nanjiro's distraction worked. Now Ryoma was more focused on having to visit that _idiotic_, _senile_ Council. Every part of him absolutely loathed the Council and every last member on it since every last member to him was just another completely annoying fool. And what he hated the most were those looks. The looks of contempt they always directed at him. They sized him up...staring him down as if he was there prey.

"Stupid Council..." Ryoma growled. "Go die in a hole."

"The Slayer's Council? Are those words of treason?"

Whirling around, Ryoma frozen and blushed while abruptly turning his head away. There standing in all of his glory was Fuji Syuusuke. But in Ryoma's mind-Enemy #1.

"Saa…why are you blushing Ryo-chan?"

"Shut up!" Ryoma huffed.

Ryoma quickly tried to make an escape back into the school building, away from Fuji. Unfortunately, the sadist had different plans in mind. Fuji easily caught Ryoma by grabbing his arm. Spinning him around Fuji softly kissed Ryoma's forehead.

"Be careful when you're in the Slayers Council," Fuji whispered in a soft voice. "I don't want to see you hurt."

Ryoma's heart melted and his mind began to blank out the moment Fuji's lips touched his forehead. Closing his golden cat like eyes, Ryoma leaned into the embrace, relishing in the warmth.

Reality crashed down on the school guardian. Ryoma's eyes shot open and he quickly pushed Fuji away with his blush darkening. His body yearned for more soft touches but Ryoma forced those thoughts away. Just because no one has ever held him like that means that he needs it! This...this...this was wrong! Just plain wrong! No way in all of hell should a hunter fall in love with a vampire and especially for a pureblood!

It went against all the rules out there.

"What's wrong, Ryo-chan?" Fuji asked while stepping forward and cupping Ryoma's cheek. "Something on your mind...?"

"Don't call me 'Ryo-chan'," Ryoma venomously stated, slapping away Fuji's hand. "And it's none of your business!"

"But didn't you like it when I called you Ryo-chan, Ryo-chan?" Fuji innocently asked.

"I don't recall ever saying that I liked it, Syu-kun!"

Silence covered the entire area as Ryoma quickly buried his face into his hands, horrified what had tumbled out. Why in the world did he call Fuji, Syu-kun? It made no sense! He wasn't close to the pureblood...but they did share a kiss... No! NO! There was no relationship between them. Fuji was just playing around with him...

Ryoma waited for Fuji to tease him mercilessly but nothing disturbed the frozen silence.

Slowly, Ryoma lifted his head and peeked at Fuji who's eyes were opened. Instead of glowing red eyes, Fuji's eyes were a piercing blue colored. Those glowing eyes showed shock as Fuji stared wide-eyed at Ryoma. And beyond that shock, Ryoma could see a hint of pain.

A shaking hand slowly touched Ryoma's hair and slid down to rest on the bridge of Ryoma's nose. Time stopped as Ryoma stared deeply into the azure pool that was quietly drowing Ryoma, dragging him deeper and deeper.

"Ryo-chan...you...are..."

"Oi! Echizen! Where are you?" Horio shouted out, finally noticing his roommate had gone missing.

Snapping out of his daze, Ryoma cursed himself for the third time and pulled himself away from Fuji's touch. Turning around, Ryoma ran away without looking back. But his fist closed right over where his heart was.

(X X X X X)

_"Is there going to be a time where I can't see you anymore?" _

The words were tumbling out of Ryoma's mouth but the boy had no control over them.

_"Maybe... The future is full of uncertainty."_

Who...Who...? Ryoma was sure he knew that person but yet...the name that was on the tip of his tongue continued to elude him.

_"That's no fun!"_

_"Gomen..."_

_"I want to be with you..."_

_"I'm here now."_

_"Yup... But what's the point if you aren't here tomorrow?"_

_"You'll understand soon enough, Ryo-chan."_

_"Syu-kun, look, the sun is setting!"_

_"Beautiful isn't it. Even if the sun doesn't set tomorrow, the sunset right now is still beautiful."_

_"Oh... I guess I see... But, promise me, Syu-kun. You'll definitely watch more sunsets with me!"_

That name...That person...The reason why it was so familiar... It couldn't be! That was impossible. Ryoma's heart pounded and was desperate to escape the chains that Ryoma had secure it with. It wanted to break free, to love freely.

_"Definitely, Ryo-chan."_

_"I'm glad~!"_

The train bumped and it shook Ryoma awake. The boy sat still for a few seconds before calmly opening his eyes and glancing out the window. After disciplining himself up in the mountains to awaken quietly, Ryoma finally managed to perfect his technique. Every since he was little, Ryoma would have random nightmares and wake up screaming. The screaming embarassed the boy and that was why he focused so much on it.

And it was damn useful when playing a prank on his old man.

"We're almost there brat. Remember, behave," Nanjiro half-heartedly grunted when he noticed Ryoma was awake.

Not replying, Ryoma instead re-examined his latest dream. In a way, the dream could be a flashback. It certainly felt like it. But it made no sense... He didn't have any close friends that would call him "Ryo-chan" and most definitely he was never that..._sappy_ and _childish_.

But that person...whoever it was, was someone that Ryoma wanted to be with.

And that made him more pissed.

_But you can't deny it!_

(X X X X X)

"Yo, Echizens, puri~!" Niou greeted with a smirk as a mischievous glint in his eyes promised future pranks. The two had just walked through the stone entrance.

"Oh, Niou-senpai," Ryoma muttered as he pushed his cap down over his eyes. Niou was one of the more younger hunters, just two years older than Ryoma. But he was already quite accomplished. Though if he could avoiding killing vampires, he would definitely avoid it. This made quite a few of the other vampire hunters angry but most brushed it off. They said it was his age.

"Oi brat, it's no hats in doors." Rolling his eyes, Ryoma pulled off the hat and held it underneath his arm while shooting an annoyed glance at his dad.

"Alright brat, go do whatever but don't break anything. I have to discuss junk with the council," Nanjiro stated bluntly as he wandered down a hall. Ryoma tucked his hands into his pockets and 'tch'ed softly.

"Come on kid, I have to show you around, puri." Niou glanced down the hall and immediately narrowed his eyes into a glare when he noticed how many of the hunters in the corridor were staring at the. Deciding it was better to ignore them, Niou walked in the opposite direction that Nanjiro left.

"Aa…" Ryoma absently grunted back, following behind the 'trickster'.

Turning around, Niou paused in front of the Slayer Library (that held all of the reports after they've been read and filed and historic records).

"Puri, I have to wa-"

_BOOM!_

"What the…?" Ryoma managed to say before another bomb went off in the library. Quickly backing away and holding up his hands to cover his face, Ryoma tried to stare between his fingers and find the source of the bombing.

"What the hell do you think you're standing around for, puri? Move you stupid brat!" Niou yelled as he dashed past Ryoma.

_What fool would do this…? Even Niou-senpai wouldn't do a thing of this magnitude… Unless someone is hiding something…_Ryoma mused to himself. Training did not just include the physical aspects but also the mental ones (especially useful in situations likes these. It may be cocky but there was a voice inside Ryoma that always said that he would never die so easily.

Following behind Niou and going along with the stream of hunters, Ryoma quickly sharpened his senses and tried to detect any malicious intent in the area (besides the hunters' of course). Though, oddly, he couldn't find anyone. So that could either mean the person could hide himself, or herself, very well or the bomb was activated by remote…

_BOOM!_

Golden eyes widened as the ceiling fell down as well.

_This is…_

"LOOK OUT!" a hunter shouted as many dive for cover but Ryoma couldn't move.

All he did was watch the ceiling collapse and the huge chunks of stone, rubber, wood, and cement slam down towards him.

"RYOMA!"

(X X X X X)

Sorry about how this chapter is a bit shorter than the first three. Thank you for reading!

Last note (about updating): Please forgive my unintended hiatus. Multiple things came up and I decided to stop to resolve a few plot issues. Hopefully I can start up a flow and write more.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 to me is a stepping stone. I'll try my best. And try to add extra fluff... (It might be hard to find... Oh, and I sneaked something else in)

Oh, and thank you to all who reviewed/alerted/favorited this story (and for some author alerts as well, eheheh). Because of my break, everything got a bit jumbled up so I can't list the names. Thank you though, very much.

(X X X X X)

_Shit, shit, shit, shit_, Niou ranted in his head as he quickly glanced around the demolished hall of the Headquarters. He quickly brushed the dust clinging to his clothes and dashed into the crumbled clearing.

Literally, it was a demolished palace of chaos. Where the ceiling for the first floor was, was now just a huge gaping hole with jagged edges. Pipes were bent and twisted and water poured straight out of the broken ends. Meanwhile, wires gave off sharp sparks that threatened to start a fire.

Worst of all, the hysteria was growing thicker among the hunters as people searched for partners and clues on the attack. They were so arrogant to the point that they believed that they were invincible and an attack on their own home could never happen.

Tch, fools.

Niou easily ignored the shouting and yelling (having gotten used to it from his pranks) and instead quickly scanned the remaining hunters to see who had fallen pray to the rumble. Anxiety (something Niou hated) settled and rolled about in his stomach.

_Him… and her… the two that are fun to tease about being in a relationship… and then him who is fun to pull pranks on since he gets angry easily… and then… wait… someone is missing, well someone important enough for my attention. But… _

His eyes widened slightly before Niou facepalmed and groaned out loud._  
><em>

"Nanjiro is gonna murder me," Niou muttered darkly and as he quickly did a double take on the hunters in the area. It was exceedingly harder to count the number of people and found the pipsqueak with so many medics pouring into the area but his sharp eyes managed.

_Yup… no… Ryoma… _

"I'm dead."

"Yes, you are if you can't answer my question. _Where's my son?_"

(X X X X X)

Small coughs to clear the dust in his lungs shook Ryoma's frame as the boy winced whenever he aggravated a deep wound on his body. Gently closing and opening his eyes to clear his vision, Ryoma soon made out where he was:

Buried. Underground. With limited air.

_I blame that idiot old man for my cursed luck. _

Quickly covering his mouth again, Ryoma curled back into a ball on his side as harder and wilder coughs poured out of his mouth. Though he probably will die of lack of oxygen down here, it was lucky that somehow last millisecond his body had got the sense to dive somewhere safer. Ryoma managed to skid to a wall and a large, long chunk of either the wall or ceiling had landed slanted (creating a small triangle area underneath).

Finally having managed to calm down his body, Ryoma reached up with a pale hand and pressed against the wall in front of him and pushed as hard as he could. It didn't budge at all. Sighing, Ryoma then experimentally tested all of his muscles to only wince. He had badly damaged his ankle while skidding across the floor. Plus, there seemed to be a long deep wound alone the same leg.

"Damn it…" Ryoma hissed as a wave of pain shot up from his leg. That ruled out the possibility of crawling around to find/create some sort of opening.

_Wait… Breathe Ryoma… Think for god's sake… _the boy mentally berated himself and closed his eyes. _Listen… there's got to be some idiots out there and with their loud voices that you can hear… _

Scrunching up his nose, the boy tried to reach out and hear something that he could call out to. But, alas, not a single voice reached him. He could only hear the soft dripping of the blood from his wound.

_Crap… On the other side are probably only the remains of the ceiling… No one would be coming over for a while… _

Resigning himself to his fate, Ryoma vaguely wondered how much air he had left. Unless of course there was a hole, then he would probably die of blood loss or something else.

_And I can't even see Syu-kun, Kei-kun, and everyone.  
><em>

_Wait… WHAT? _

Jumping at the random thought that popped his brain (and he didn't even know who Kei-kun was and who everyone implied!), Ryoma almost let out a shriek of pain but quickly clamped down his jaw to prevent it from escaping. Closing his eyes, his mind quickly worked to push down the pain and ignore it. Slowly adjusting his body, Ryoma calm down his frazzled nerves.

"God damn it all," Ryoma cursed. "If I'm not going to die, then someone hurry it up and find me!"

Tightly clenching his hand into a fist, Ryoma wandered back to his previous thought about "Syu-kun". Though, as much as he hated to admit it, it was probably true… Then again, Ryoma just might prefer dying alone then with everyone fussing and blah, blah, blah.

"…That old man screwed up my mind…" Ryoma muttered darkly as he realized how "morbid" his thoughts really were. Hell, what type of 12 years old thought about _death_ as much as he did? In his defense, he was in a situation where he could easily die...

_Distraction working…_ Ryoma vaguely thought. The pain from his ankle and other wounds had turned into a small dull throb. And thankfully the creepy thoughts that Ryoma thought were someone else's had decided to disappear for the time being.

Slowly, Ryoma carefully pushed himself back to lean against the wall. Closing his eyes, he relaxed his muscles and fell into a half-sleeping state.

_Probably will be a while till a rescue team for people trapped like me comes… Might as well sleep..._

Letting out a loose yawn, Ryoma set his arms across his stomach and let his head drop so his chin touched his chest. Then, rolling his head to the side, Ryoma started to drift off into dreamland.

"_If you find yourself with a gaping wound and you can't secure it to stop the bleeding, then you need to stay awake at all costs. As long as you're awake, you can use your will to stay alive."_

Ryoma's eyes snapped back open as he quickly pounded his chest. Coughing and choking, Ryoma finally managed to clear his airway and fill his lungs. Sighing in relief, Ryoma's finger twitched as he stared out in the cramp little space.

"_Once you lose your will to live, that's when you stop growing, stop evolving. You become nothing… no you are worse than nothingness." _

"Damn old man…" Ryoma cursed. "I get it… Stay awake…"

Resolving to continue in quiet bleakness, Ryoma's head fell to the side as he relaxed all of his muscles and stared out with blank eyes. He was in a half meditating state where his mind was blank. Slowing, Ryoma leaned back against the wall and pulled his elbows back into a more comfortable position.

Almost instantly, his left elbow slipped back and Ryoma almost toppled over but quickly regain back his balance.

_Hiss! _

_Skid!_

"What the…?" Ryoma murmured. Spreading out his hands, Ryoma felt along the wall to feel a small hole, just big enough for a hand to slide through.

_Something hidden in there…? _

Gritting his teeth, Ryoma slid his body out and then twisted his body around. Using his right hand to hold up his torso, Ryoma held out his left hand and reached into the hole to touch something rough and coarse but thin and fragile.

Two fingers clamped down onto whatever it was and dragged it out of the small hole only for Ryoma to throw it away in disgust. It was a dead rat and what he was holding onto was its tail.

Narrowing his eyes, Ryoma warily reached in again, believing that there was something inside the hole that wasn't a rodent…or pest… or insect…

Ryoma's fingertips gently brushed against a thin tough material. Frowning, Ryoma reached a little deeper in. Biting his tongue, the boy paused to relax his screaming muscles for a second. Then, Ryoma snatched out whatever it was and twisted around; sighing in relief as his body returned to a normal position.

Dropping the 'thing' as he now dubbed it into his lap, Ryoma ran his fingers softly over it. He guessed it was paper (but there was a small chance it wasn't, he didn't have any light). Questions of why anyone would stick a paper into a wall ran through his head. From what he could tell, the document seemed a bit old. There were multiple creases and folds and tears along with the flat the paper seemed to be softer, more delicate than normal new paper.

Turning around again, even against the protest of his body, Ryoma slid his hand in to drag out more 'things'. All of them felt like paper and Ryoma made sure to try and keep the stack in the same order as he found them. Finally, he couldn't reach anymore and he settled on the things he did manage to recover. Knowing his dad would try to steal it, Ryoma slipped the thing, actually _things_ underneath his shirt and made sure they wouldn't fall out.

Sighing, Ryoma placed his arms behind him and leaned back so the crown of his head touched the back wall. Unconscious was starting to invade his body and Ryoma guessed it was the blood lost.

_How much time has passed…? I wonder… _Ryoma blankly thought.

A small groan passed out of Ryoma's lips as he shifted again. His muscles were going stiff and numb and a cold dull haze was starting to cloud and plague his mind.

Taking in multiple quick short breathes and pinching himself, Ryoma fought to stay awake.

At the end of the line somehow…Ryoma found he still wanted to live…at the very least he wasn't going to go down and die like this. He was a fighter and he'll be damn if he died anywhere that isn't a battlefield.

Battlefield... How many battlefields have he seen...?

His train of thought grew more disturbing to Ryoma has he began to think of the _opposite_ of a battlefield. Now what would that be...? Home...? That made sense in a way. For home to be the opposite of a battlefield.

A battlefield was a place of pride and strength. Where one proved his/her's worth to the world and defeated all of his/her enemies without mercy and without hesitation. Though some would argue that there also had to be a sense of justice in the air.

But what was justice...? Something decided by other people and inflicted onto another person at a young age... Even karma was invented by someone. Though it made sense... Wait, did it only make sense because Ryoma had heard of it since he was young...? Because he was nursed into the idea...?

Gah!

Ryoma crushed his train of thought, finding his thinking disturbing and unnecessary. Though, the words gave some sense of comfort to Ryoma. He knew his personality well enough and knew that he would never have such a twisted line of thinking. So, who in the world was he copying...?

_Syu-kun_

Jaw falling slack, Ryoma accidentally moved his injured leg and winced and hissed darkly. Great, the stupid brunette found a way back into his thoughts. Why couldn't the pureblood leave him alone? Why?

WHY DID HE WANT SYUUSUKE FUJI OF ALL PEOPLE TO SAVE HIM?

_You've fallen..._

The very idea made Ryoma want to vomit but at the same time... Ryoma shook his head in frustration and gritted his teeth while hugging himself. His skin felt cold while his heart burned a bright fiery hot read. All of these contradicting emotions made Ryoma angry to no end. How can he fall so deeply in love! He hated the way Fuji was so fleeting like the wind. There and then gone... He hated how those eyes were always hidden and those creeping smiles... Though, how can he adore them at the same time! Perhaps not adore...maybe be addicted?

Or love...?

"ARGH!"

The defeated roar tore at Ryoma's throat but the boy relished in the pain-a quick break from his clouding and confusing emotions.

Slowly, Ryoma's energy left him and his heart began to feel cold like his body. He shivered once and then twice. And finally his boy couldn't repress the trembles that crawled all over his limbs.

"_Syu-kun... I'm scared.._."

The hunter boy knew that the words left his lips but somehow they seemed like from a dream... a distant horizon...

"_I want to go home... Kei-kun, you said that you'll always be able to find me._"

Where was Syu-kun? He promised that they would see more sunsets... Why was he letting Ryoma fade away in this damp, cold place. This dark, creepy den. Where was he? Where was he? Ryoma's eyes fluttered.

Where was Kei-kun? Kei-kun always smiled softly for Ryoma... Why wasn't here smiling softly and saying "_Ore-sama is glad you're alright_?" Why were they there?

What about his senpai...? They gave him such warmth... so much happiness...

"_Help... Help... Please..._"

_Tap!_

_Tap!_

_Tap!_

"Check over there too! Don't forget to use your heat detector to find people who are unconscious!" a voice ordered out.

_So they finally are looking for survivors…I wonder… did anyone die yet? _Ryoma blankly thought as he returned to control of his mind. But then his eyes fluttered again and he settled back down. The brief moment where his shell broke already vanishing from his mind.

_Tired…_

"I think I've found someone here!" another voice called out. "Come help me move the rubble."

"Got it…"

_You all are loud… Go away… I'm sleeping… _

"Hello? Can you answer me? Are you alright?"

_Shut…up…would…you…?_

"Be careful, we don't want the rock crumbling down on whoever is there."

"I know Yanagi…" a voice grunted.

_Yanagi-senpai…Why is he being loud…? _

Harsh light briefly blinded Ryoma in white before shapes started to form. Though, his brain was too hazy to figure out what was going on. Blank golden eyes stared out at the two pairs of shocked ones.

"Oh god… It's Ryoma… Ryoma! Hey! Ryoma! Oi! Wake up brat! Don't die yet!" a voice yelled at him.

"Medics! Over here, fast!" Yanagi yelled. "Niou, help me move him. It looks like he lost a lot of blood."

"Are you sure we should move him?"

"I don't see any signs of broken ribs or wounds on his torso. Just move."

_What's…going on? _

Strong arms slowly and carefully picked up Ryoma while another set of hands fluttered about, trying to find a place where they can help.

"He's not in good condition. We'll have to rush him to the ER to get a blood transfusion and fix that leg of his. It's going to need a lot of stitches."

Thudding footsteps made Ryoma winced as the headache that he had been avoiding came back in full force. The headache was caused by both his conflicting emotions and from some rocks that managed to hit his head. Ryoma tried to work the words of "_shut up_" to come out but they stayed stuck in his throat.

"Ryoma! Brat! Can you hear me?"

_Don't call me brat… _

"Echizen-san, he'll be fine. We just need to get him to the ER."

"What's wrong with him? His eyes are open! Can't you hear me? Brat!"

_Too many voices… Be quiet… _

Golden eyes to flutter shut as a breathing mask was quickly placed on his face. Ryoma felt as if he was suspended high into the air. Flying higher and higher…farther and farther away…it was a dream…

_"Syu-kun!"_

Then, only blackness remained.

(X X X X X)

The part before the "tap tap tap" might be a bit confusing... Sorry about that. I can't really explain because then I'll be giving away spoilers. For those of you who are starting to catch on, shhhhhh.

Thank you for reading.


	6. Chapter 6

Thank you for reading. Hope you enjoy!

Oh, and on a **side note**, I've only included Atobe from Hyotei here because I was wondering if anyone wanted any tennis regular member of Hyotei as a hunter (since I'm not overfamiliar with them, I don't really know who would be able to fit as a hunter). Although, there is no way I'm changing Atobe, Yukimura, and Sanada from being a pureblood (=.= I hope this isn't a spoiler). They all fit it too well…

**Official To-Be-Included or Already-There Pairings**: Ryoma x Fuji, Sakuno x Tezuka, Niou x Yagyuu (it may be a few chapters), hints of Atobe x Ryoma (main will still be Thrill)

**Disclaimer:** The Story Idea, Prince of Tennis, and Vampire Knight all do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owners.

(X X X X X)

"Ne, Tezuka, do you feel that?" Fuji asked as he tilted his head. The faint scent that the wind was bringing was strong and brash along with the taste of gold and rich wine.

"…" Tezuka's eyes widened slightly before narrowing darkly. Sighing, he set down his book and stood up. "Aa, I do. Atobe." Cleaning up his desk, Tezuka braced himself for a chaotic meeting with the fellow pureblood.

"Saa… I wonder what Atobe is doing all the way out here." As usual, a placid calm smile covered his face, hiding his true feelings. Inside, the gears were churning fast. Did Atobe discover Echizen Ryoma? Or did he finally found some valuable information on that incident?

"Greetings peasants; ore-sama is here to grace you with his presence!" Atobe announced as he slammed opened the double doors.

A flushed Oishi immediately popped up behind Atobe, out of breath from running so fast. Noticing the glance from Tezuka, Oishi bowed deeply and quickly explained himself.

"A-ah! Gomen Tezuka, Fuji. Atobe-san just burst in…" Oishi apologized. And then quickly bowed to Atobe as well, mumbling apologizes on sounding rude.

Internally Fuji gave a quick snigger while externally he tilted his head innocent and flashed a quick bright grin of pure 'innocence'. "It's fine. So Atobe…what news have you brought us that you needed to come all the way here to tell us?"

"…" A dark shadow crossed Atobe's face and Tezuka quickly caught onto the subject of the coming conversation. The only time Atobe's face darkened was when it involved a certain person or it had to do with the peace slipping between the vampires and hunters.

"Oishi, please leave us."

"H-hai." Oishi's signature 'mother-hen, worried frown' made its appearance as Oishi quickly retreated out of the room. Walking away, Oishi made sure to stay close enough to appear quickly when called for and far away enough that he couldn't hear their conversation.

Sensing the tense atmosphere, Fuji snapped open his eyes and scanned Atobe up and down to make sure he didn't miss anything. His sharp azure eyes noted the way Atobe's clothes were slightly ruffled and the way his hair had a 'wind brushed' tone to it. For any normal person, those two signs would be quickly overlooked. For Atobe who took great pride in his always 'professional' and 'amazing' look…

"Ore-sama did as you requested, Tezuka," Atobe quickly stated after a tense pause of silence. "Ore-sama investigated the incident about the pureblood siblings from a while back. They covered it up and told us a fake story."

"_Fake?_" Fuji seethed. A very precious person to Fuji was involved in that incident…and if the story he was told was false… Then everything made more sense! It made sense why those two were walking around!

Taking a calming breath after seeing Tezuka's warning look, Fuji clenched his hand into a tight fist and bit his tongue to allow Atobe to continue.

Said pureblood flipped a lock of his silvery hair while collapsing back into a one-seat chair in the study. Crossing his legs, Atobe continued.

"We were all told that something went wrong with the experiment and it resulted in the entire family of four's death. When ore-sama looked into it, ore-sama found autopsy reports on the parents."

"Impossible. Everyone was blown up to dust in the explosion…" Fuji slightly winced when Tezuka stated that but quickly covered it up before the two noticed.

The moment he had heard those words a long time ago, Fuji freaked out so badly that he had to be sedated for a month. Tezuka wasn't any better. He had come down with a heavy fever and couldn't think straight. Losing a mate could do that to you...

Atobe snapped back, "Ore-sama knows that! Ore-sama read the autopsy report and it stated the two were killed by a hunter's weapon. After that…ore-sama tried to see if there was more information on the project itself. It seems the so-called 'peacemaking' scientists that wanted to do a simply investigation to find a way to cure Level E's back into normal humans really wanted to investigate pureblood's more. And experimented with turning them into human."

"Then…!" Fuji gaped. "Echizen Ryoma is…!"

"And Echizen Sakuno," Tezuka added with a dark scowl. No wonder the girl's blood beckoned him all this time. He felt disguisted to be so attached (part of it stem from betraying his mate while the other part was from the fact that the girl was just a child).

"Ore-sama finds it highly likely… Ore-sama is very disturbed on this. Who knows what else those horrible low life peasants did…?" Atobe growled. Leaning back, Atobe slipped out a file from within his coat. Fuji and Tezuka weren't the only ones that were friends with those two. "Ore-sama's information comes from these papers. The actually experiment records are supposedly within the hunters' headquarters."

"Thank you, Atobe."

"…" Fuji was surprising quiet as he blankly stared up at the ceiling.

"What do you think on this, Fuji?" Atobe probed. "After all…your precious little Ryo-chan is now back. If your love has died…" A sly smirk crossed over Atobe's face. "Ore-sama would be more than happy to-"

_Bam! _

"Fuji!"

Atobe quietly chuckled to himself. The pureblood vampire of "royalty" (according to him) had jumped up above the chair to avoid a harsh slash of wind from Fuji. Instead of hitting him, it slashed right through the chair and destroyed a part of the floor. Feathers float freely in the raging winds that blew papers everywhere.

Silver met azure in a quick flash battle with neither side relenting till finally Tezuka stood between the two. His harsh glare immediately smashed the silent battle.

"Anyways… Maybe we should question that peasant Echizen Nanjiro on what he knows," Atobe continued. "Ore-sama also thinks that-"

"TEZUKA! FUJI! ATOBE! THERE'S BEEN A GREAT INCIDENT!" Oishi shouted as he slammed open the door. "Someone * pant * launched an attack * pant * on the hunter's headquarters * pant *. An entire wing of the building * pant * has been destroyed."

"Hunters?" Fuji shouted. "That's where Ryo and Nanjiro went!"

"Fuji, calm down!"

"How do you expect me to just calm down?"

"Irrational thinking is not going to get you anywhere," Tezuka coolly answered. "We must keep our guard up."

Closing his eyes again, Fuji mentally counted to 10 and calmed himself down. "I understand… I apologize…" Every muscle trembled in his body and his heart yearn to be near his newly found mate. To hold him and whisper soft words into his ear...

"Continue your explanation," Atobe ordered to Oishi who quickly complied.

"It was a sudden bombing attack, near the western part of the hunters' headquarters. A part of the second floor collapsed down onto the first floor. Thankfully the ceiling didn't collapse as well but there was a huge fire," Oishi spluttered out in a rush. "The message just came in from the Vampire Council."

"Hm…so the Vampire Council is still spying on their headquarters…" Atobe murmured softly to himself. The pureblood wasn't overly concerned with the hunters but the fact Ryoma and Nanjiro there shook him a bit. But Atobe quickly countered that with a how the heck can those die...?

"Anything else?" Fuji demanded.

Oishi merely shook his head sadly. "Sorry Fuji…nothing else to report."

"…"

"Ah! I'll go ask Ryuzaki-san right now for any more news!" Oishi called out as he ran out of the room once more.

"Don't worry." Atobe squeezed Fuji's shoulder as he also walked out. "You know how stubborn that brat is."

"…Saa…"

_I just don't think… I can survive…going through something like incident that again. _

(X X X X X)

"Don't worry Echizen-san. Your son is in a very stable condition. The only thing worrisome in his condition is the blood loss but we've already treated that."

"Thank you."

_Distant voices… _

"Hurry up and get better brat… When you wake up, I'm going to give you hell for making me worry so much."

_Heh…I would like… to see you try old man. _

Ryoma's pale fingers slightly twitched and then his limbs suddenly jerked. His breathing grew heavier and quickly turned into panting as his legs started kicking off the sheets covering him. Groans easily bounced off of his tongue.

"Oi! Brat! Are you okay? Ryoma?"

"Same idiot old man."

"…?"

Ryoma calmly yawned and stretched his arms up above his head. He shifted on the medical cot so he was sitting on the edge instead of lying down. The golden-eyed boy bit back a wince when he aggravated his leg wound but no pain passed across his face.

"You tricked me you damn brat!"

_I wonder if my birth certificate reads 'Ryoma' or 'brat'. Kei-kun also called me a brat._

A "_what the hell?_" almost slipped passed Ryoma's lips but he quickly reminded himself that his dad was in front of him. And apparently the old man knew something about his random flashbacks._  
><em>

Instead, Ryoma focused on getting back to their old banter to fool the senior Echizen into thinking that absolutely nothing had changed.

_And it wasn't like I'm going to tell him that there seemed to be a _**second** _person in my mind.  
><em>

"You should be more conscious of when a person is tricking you or is actually about to die," Ryoma deadpanned back evenly. His golden eyes were still a bit foggy but over all, he was back into regular condition.

"Shut up." Although Nanjiro kept the annoyed expression firmly on his face, he inwardly sighed and smiled. Ryoma is Ryoma after all…

Ah, how foolish. What someone didn't want to see, they will never notice, not matter how big the signs.

"What's my condition?" Ryoma asked while experimentally testing his legs.

"You had to get stitches on your leg… And there was the blood transfusion. But other than that, it's just bruises and cuts," Nanjiro answered. "Stupid brat. You'll have to keep that in a bandage for a while."

"No."

"You are."

"No way."

"I don't care how much you don't like it; you're going to keep that bandage on."

Ryoma glowered at Nanjiro and crossed his arms with a huff. This was just great! The stupid bandage was going to get in the way of his walking…especially since it had to go over his knee as well. That meant he also might need a crutch. Oh god…there was one up against the wall next to him.

This was going to be embarrassing.

"Echizen-san, the doctor said you two can leave when you're son wakes…" the nurse stated as she popped her head. "Oh! He's awake. Good. There are some clothes on the chair. Have a nice day!"

_Nice day…? Bleh…_

"Oh~! Nurse-chan~! Thank you~!" Nanjiro cheerfully stated while a vein popped in Ryoma's forehead. He grabbed the nearest thing (which was the crutch popped against the wall) and smacked Nanjiro over the head with it.

The nurse blinked as she stared at the man stuck to the floor while sighing.

"You don't need to take care of him," Ryoma muttered darkly. "The stupid old man will be fine."

Warily, Ryoma set his bare feet against the cold tiles of the hospital floor and set some weight on his legs. Immediately, a shot of pain ran up his leg and he winced. Ryoma sighed and resigned himself to his fate. This time using the crutch for support, Ryoma stood up.

"Thanks…" Ryoma muttered while giving a clumsy bow. The nurse gave a fake closed eyed smile and nodded and quickly walked out of the door as if dogs were nipping at her heels.

Ryoma scowled and his bad mood instantly came back. He could see it written all over the woman's face! It stated one thing-_you're disgusting, evil, and creepy._

The boy couldn't understand why this kept following around him. He somehow understood that normal oblivious humans would outcast him due to his indifferent attitude and prodigy status. But for some reason it also happened among the hunters…

"Gaaaaaaaah!" Nanjiro groaned as he stood up while rubbing his sore head. "You…."

"Save the insults for later. I want to get out of here," Ryoma arrogant retorted.

Grabbing the clothes on the chair, Ryoma limped into the attached bathroom and closed and locked the door behind him. Shifting through the pile, Ryoma grabbed the shirt (which was actually his shirt but clean and mended).

Ryoma stopped and tilted his head in confusion. He didn't need a light so he didn't bother to turn it on but now he just heard a strange sound that didn't sound the rustling of cloth. Instead, it was the rustling of paper.

Fumbling, Ryoma found the light switch and flicked it on. His eyes widened as he locked down and saw a few pieces of stray paper scattered on the floor. He glanced into his hands and found more pieces of paper tucked within his shirt.

Vague memories of when he was trapped underneath the rumble came back and Ryoma recalled sticking the paper underneath his shirt.

_Huh…_

Ryoma took one of the papers and held it up to the light. The yellowing aging paper had scribbles all over it. Turning it over, Ryoma froze and his fingers trembled slightly.

Among the fancy black calligraphy, he spotted a few words:

_Ryoma Echizen…_

_Sakuno Echizen… _

_Experiment…_

_Pureblood to human… _

"Wha...?" Ryoma exclaimed softly and immediately grabbed another paper and looked at it. This time it was more organized instead of random rants.

Narrowing his eyes, Ryoma tried to make out what it said but the black writing swirled in his heads and turned into distant scribbles. Blinking, Ryoma closed his eyes and mentally counted to 10 and waited for the nausea to pause.

Deciding he could investigate later, Ryoma changed out of his hospital garb back into his normal clothes. Grabbing all the paper and organizing them back into a pile, Ryoma slipped them once again underneath his shirt and made sure that it would stay put.

"You done yet, brat?" Nanjiro asked through the door.

"Yes…" Ryoma slammed open the door, barely missing Nanjiro. "…You stupid perverted old man."

"Shut up!"

(X X X X X)

The train's whistle resounded once again throughout the station. Ryoma sighed in relief when he and his dad boarded the train, barely making it.

No it wasn't because of the bombing incident that they were almost late to their train. Even with it, they still could've made it 30 minutes earlier to departure. Oh no, it was the fact that they passed a certain bookstore with an 18+ section where perverts were flocking. Just the thought of that horrid porn corner made Ryoma's vein popped and mouth twist into a snarl.

Honestly...

Should a parent really be doing these type of things...?

Ryoma hissed as a few rushing people jostled him and caused him to tumbled into the wall. Sending a dark glare towards their direction, Ryoma pushed himself back into a standing position and continued down the thin corridor, looking for their train compartment.

Speaking of his idiot old man... Where the heck was he? He was just here a minute ago...

"Why what beautiful figure you have!"

That does it...

Ryoma was locking that idiot out of their tran compartment and making sure to tell his mother about this. If that old man won't listen to him, for sure he'll listen to his wife! And her threats to burn his porn!

But Ryoma can do the latter easily. A mischievous grin crossed the boy's face. Oh yes, he can definitely do that.

"Ack...!"

His crutch slipped away from underneath him as the train lurch forward. Ryoma quickly tumbled into the gaudy wood walls of the overly lavish train (apparently his old man wanted to ride a 'better class' train to find 'better class' women...). Wincing, Ryoma struggled to find a hold to lift himself back up. The anesthetic the doctors carelessly pumped through him was too much and basically made his entire leg fell asleep.

Cursing his luck, Ryoma tried to straighten out his body when a strong arm lift him up.

Snapping his eyes open in shock, Ryoma looked up to meet stunned brown eyes.

"Sanada, what is it?" a soft but stern voice asked curiously as a feminine man with a strong aura walked up.

"You..."

(X X X X X)

It's pretty obvious who the other in the ending is.

Rikkaidai, coming in next time~!

Thank you for reading ^-^


	7. Chapter 7

**Side note:** I suddenly changed around with a few of the names (Yukimura vs Seiichi, Syusuke vs Fuji, etc.) due to the fact I wanted to try and add in how people referred to each other outside of the dialogue.

**Disclaimer**: (I apologize for not including the disclaimer all the time...) The Story Idea, Prince of Tennis, and Vampire Knight all do not belong to me. They belong to their respective (great) owners.

(X X X X X)

"Buchou, are you alright?" Jackal asked, his face echoed the worry from his voice. He was sitting up straight on the train's plush bench inside their own private compartment and was leaning forward to glance at Yukimura.

"Are you * smack * * chew * feeling sick…?" Mauri asked, quickly picking up on what was worrying Bunta. The slight...shocked look that covered Yukimura's face emphasized the sorrow that somehow managed to thread itself in. It was a sheer cry from the normal serene and peaceful smile.

"You look like you saw a ghost," Kirihara bluntly stated. The sea-weed haired boy quickly regretted it when Sanada lightly (compared to his other ones) smacked one. Wincing, Kirihara opened his mouth to apologize but Yukimura smoothly cut in.

"Yes… I'm fine," Yukimura gave a small smile. "Don't worry about it."

"_We will be arriving at Newport in a half an hour."_

Yukimura shifted in his window seat and the train and turned to stare out through the glass. His mind wandered far away as Mauri started to tease Kirihara while Jackal and Sanada were discussing current events. Out of the corner of his eyes, Yukimura spotted Sanada glancing over him; only he knew what exactly was eating on Yukimura's conscience.

Even Yukimura, a high ranked pureblood, was completely baffled and lost on the situation. The information he had _clearly_ and _bluntly_ stated that, _that _pureblood family was dead (including _all_ the heirs). Realizing that his friend knew as much as he did, Sanada retracted his gaze and returned to his conversation with Jackal.

_But my heart…_ Yukimura softly snickered at that. To the humans and hunters (for some reason, people never categorized hunters as humans necessarily…), vampires didn't have hearts.

The feminine looking boy quickly amended what he was thinking.

_But my __**gut**__ is telling me what is going on. Somehow those two survived… They did…and they survived as __**humans**__… Or was it __**hunters**__?_

A knot of dread settled into Yukimura's gut as he briefly froze. Those two were innocent and carefree when they were young…but that was because they were little children then. They hadn't yet experienced the world or start having opinions on issues. They hadn't yet found their true colors and hearts.

From what Yukimura could tell, Ryoma seemed to adopt after his mother with her stubbornness and masks (though you can always see the subtle kindness and happiness) while Sakuno took after her father who had bright smiles and soft, joyous laughs. If that was true…then could it be that Ryoma had been brainwashed? When asked, he said his name was **Echizen** Ryoma…

That name was famous and infamous within the vampire world.

On one hand, Echizen Nanjiro had _killed_ many vampires and helped the hunters a lot with invasions. But on the other hand… he had help create Cross Academy, started the blood program, and did peace talks…

Suddenly, Yukimura's eyes lite up while he mentally smacked himself.

He should contact the others on this! Especially Syusuke and Atobe. They both needed to know this if they didn't already know.

"Excuse me," Yukimura stated. "I need to make a call." With one step, Yukimura had gracefully crossed the compartment to the door. And in another motion, had stepped outside with his phone in his hand. Naturally, nobody tried to stop him or question him on it. Something that Yukimura was grateful for.

Yukimura scrolled through his list of contacts and mentally debated who to call. Glancing at the time, Yukimura noted that Syusuke would probably be working on a project or sleeping (since the night is when he was awake) and decided it would be better to call Atobe.

Even if the man could be hard to talk to with his nature.

_Ring…_

_Ring…_

"_Moshi, moshi?_"

"Atobe? It's me, Yukimura."

"_Oh? And what do you need from ore-sama?_"

Immediately, a frown crossed Yukimura's face. Even though the arrogance was still there (probably a habit now), something seemed off… His voice had a more strained tone to it as if Atobe was fighting to retain his normal appearance.

Narrowing his eyes, Yukimura decided it was better to be polite and not mention it.

"I met…an interesting boy on my train."

"_Interesting…?_"

"He looked exactly like Ryo-chan."

"_You saw him?_"

"…" Suspicion caused Yukimura to scowl and he unconsciously shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "Does that mean you already knew about the 'clone'?"

Withholding information from him was not something Yukimura appreciated. More like, he detested it completely. It stemmed from when Yukimura was in the hospital and everyone gave him 'placid' (**fake**) smiles and told him how he would be able to walk soon…

He nearly lost the ability to move any of his limbs. And it was only through sheer want to be with everyone again that he managed to cover the last few harsh miles of recovery.

"…_Apparently this 'clone' goes to Cross Academy as the son, and I mean biological son, of Echizen Nanjiro._"

"_He's not a clone! I know Ryo-chan anywhere!_"

"Syusuke…?" Yukimura gasped as he quickly recognized his friend's voice. The two had met when they were longer...and due to their similar nature, had found themselves talking to each other more and more. It grew to the point where they had become very close friends.

"_I'm at Cross right now…_" Atobe explained. "_Tezuka informed me about the two siblings that looked exactly like _them_. When I investigated I found many interesting things that were covered up._"

"So you're there now with all the information…"

"_If Seiichi saw Ryo-chan then, ask if Ryo-chan is alright!_"

"Did something happen…?"

"_The Hunters' Headquarters was bombed_."

Yukimura nearly dropped his cell phone. His eyes were wide and blankly stared across the small aisle at the wall across from him. Many thoughts ran through his head- _Who did this? Why did they do this? What goal are they aiming for? How did they do this?_ –but what kept popping up in his mind was one thing:

_Is the peace…already destroyed?_

"_Yukimura…? Oi, Yukimura!_"

"I'm here…" Yukimura faintly stated. "And I presume the two Echizens were at the Headquarters and that's why you all are worried? From what I saw, Echizen Ryoma seemed fine. He had his leg bandaged up and I smelled a faint trace of blood but it didn't look broken…"

Closing his eyes, Yukimura bowed his head and pinched the bridge of his nose while Atobe told Syusuke what Yukimura said. Taking deep breaths, Yukimura tried to organize his thoughts.

_First things first… The Hunters' Headquarters being bombed… This is a big thing, not a petty delinquent prank. It could very well signal the beginning of a __**war**__. _The pureblood glanced towards his side and at the compartment door. Inside, his friends were talking happily while exchanging playful banter.

A grim smile flitted across Yukimura's face as he heard Kirihara shout and complained about something. He didn't want to lose this peace…these moments…

_Second item… They are alive…_

Joy filled Yukimura's heart at the thought that two friends had returned. Even though they weren't super close, they were still precious. Especially since one of them was the mate of Syusuke. Their death threw all of them into deep mourning.

_Third thing… Something dark is surrounding their disappearance…_

Gnawing on his bottom, Yukimura considered the different scenarios. There was talk about spells that could change a vampire into a human but it seemed that eventually they wore off… Was it something like that…? Or was it more 'scientific'?

"_Moshi moshi? Yukimura?_"

"Sorry, I got lost in thought," Yukimura quickly replied while dragging himself out of his train(s) of thought. "What was the information on them?"

"_It would be best to talk about this in person._"

"That… 'important' huh…?" Yukimura stated with a faint playful tone though it sounded forced.

"_Are you on a train towards us now? If not, ore-sama can arrange for one_."

"Yes I am… I presume it's the same one that'll be taking the Echizens back as well," Yukimura answered. "I'll see you about half an hour."

"_Alright. See ya."_

_Click!_

(X X X X X)

The young human girl was tightly clutching her cell phone in her two hands; her knuckles had already turned white and were slowly turning into an even more paler shade. Biting her lip, Echizen Sakuno worriedly and desperately waited for news on her family.

Just a few moments ago Ryuzaki-sensei had called Sakuno out to her office in order to inform her of the attack (while also informing her that the 'little trip' her brother and father went on was actually a visiting trip to the Hunter's Headquarters...). She was frustrated about the fact that people still hid things from her, frustrated on the lack of news about her family, and especially frustrated on how the only thing she could do was wait, petrified, on this chair.

She had to do something to help her family! Anything that can be considered useful!

Rolling back her head to rest it against the wall, Sakuno quickly calmed herself and clasped her hands together in a tight prayer. Shutting her eyes, Sakuno mouthed along with her mental chants.

"Echizen-san...?"

The strong sure voice immediately snapped Sakuno back into reality.

"Tezuka-senpai...!" Sakuno gasped while quickly standing up and giving a short bow. A dark blush covered her entire face, neck and ears while she desperately wanted to hid in a hole away from her crush. The mere glance at his handsome stern face caused her heart to shatter because in that glance, Sakuno remembered how _hopeless_ her love was...

"I have acquired some news on your family's state. It seems that both your father and brother are on a train to here," Tezuka stated. "Your father seems to be in good condition while your brother is injured but nothing fatal. They are both on their way to here right now."

"Really...?" Sakuno breathed out while collapsing back into the chair in _complete relief_. "Thank you..."

" * cough * It was no trouble," Tezuka replied while a faint trace of pink dashed across his cheeks as he glanced away.

Sakuno shook her head in disagreement. Perhaps if she acted with Tezuka-san like he was just simply her senpai... Her chest may stop aching so badly.

"Tezuka-senpai didn't have to go out of his way to deliver this news to me..." Sakuno quietly murmured as she mentally winced as how it only increased her blush. "B-But you d-did and I'm r-really g-glad... S-since mo-ost people w-wouldn't ha-ave b-bothered." Sakuno also mentally slapped herself on how she was now _stuttering_ and looking like a _complete fool_.

A cold but warm to Sakuno hand gently rested on the top of her head and gently ruffled her hair. For some reason, today, Sakuno had decided to leave her hair out of her braids and allow the auburn locks to fall freely around her heart-shaped face. With her hair down, Sakuno seemed to mature and also her hair just seemed to blend in with her soft brown eyes. Plus, it made the small pink flush on her cheeks glow brighter.

"S-Senpai...?"

A distant emotion that Tezuka hadn't felt in a long time covered his entire soul. The bleeding of old scars slowly died down as Tezuka stared into the kind eyes of Echizen Sakuno. Then a smile, a smile that happened once in a blue moon, curved Tezuka's lips and a special gleam covered his eyes.

"...Don't ever loose that kind heart," Tezuka whispered, half to Sakuno, half to himself. Then, Tezuka dropped his hand and gracefully slid it into his pocket. "Take care."

Sakuno watched Tezuka's back as he left and she tenderly touched her left cheek which was wet. Grimly smiling, Sakuno dully wondered whether she was crying from relief of hearing that her family was alright or was she crying in sorrow and ache and need for her senpai.

(X X X X X)

Two bright shimmering azure eyes stared down at the angelic and serene face. The boy was slender and held beautiful features that were both sharp and soft. A soft relieved sigh escaped past the pureblood's lips as he reached out with a pale thin hand and gently stroked the boy's warm and flushed cheek.

Fuji had watched the two Echizens returned to meet with a fuming Ryuzaki who immediately went into a lecture frenzy about being so reckless. He agreed wholeheartedly with the elder woman as she nagged the two. But for now, he instead calmed himself and allowed himself to wallow in relief and happiness that his Ryo-chan was safe and sound. Though, the suspicions Sanada had voiced that perhaps someone was _targeting_ Ryoma brought back the subdued fury.

"Ngh..."

Ryoma twitched and shuddered before shifting slightly. Slowly, the boy returned to his peaceful deep slumbering. Fuji slipped onto a lower branch, just inches away from Ryoma's spot and his breathing immediately hitched.

Two parted smooth lips were just screaming at Fuji to kiss them. But, the pureblood knew that Ryoma would immediately try to kill him if he did that.

Another sigh escaped Fuji's lips as he settled back among the leaves in the tall tree that they were both up in currently.

The boy before him had decided that he had enough of people nagging him to be more careful and to stay in bed and had escape to the outside garden. But, ironically enough, after Ryoma had managed to pull himself up a tree, decided to fall asleep.

Snickering to himself, Fuji decided to risk it and slowly dropped himself down onto the branch underneath him. Using his winds, Fuji barely dropped any weight onto the branch and made sure to not give any indication he was creeping up on Ryoma. Taking another cautious step, Fuji advanced onwards and was now just a breath away from his love, his life.

"A-ah..." A soft whine/moan escaped Ryoma's lips and he shivered slightly underneath the cold air.

Fuji paused in his advance and then quietly slipped off his white Night Class jacket and draped it around Ryoma. The boy was quickly pleased with the warmth and curled up instantly underneath it. As Fuji softly stroked Ryoma's pink round cheek, a wicked idea fell into his mind. A sadistic grin crossed his lips and Fuji closed his eyes.

Reaching into his pocket, Fuji took out a small digital camera that Seiichi had given him as a present. Turning it on, Fuji backed up and aimed the shot carefully. The light filtering through the leaves made a lovely effect onto the picture and if he turned and faced Ryoma that way... Yes! The light was hitting from behind Ryoma, giving the beauty an extra glow of yellow around his docile face.

_Snap!_

A delighted giggle almost escaped out of Fuji's mouth but he quickly silenced it. After taking a few more shots (just to be on the safe side), Fuji pocketed the camera and just simply relaxed.

After all that has happened, these little bits will become even more scattered. Possible to the point of being lost forever. The soft moments where emotions leaked out or during the quiet calm peaceful moments that seemed to last for eternity and many more...

Fuji wanted to treasure them while he still had the chance.

"Hah...ugh..."

_Woosh! _

Golden orbs blearily gazed out at the world before they disappeared once again behind eyelids. Ryoma groaned again and slowly shifted on the harsh tough surface of the tree. Shivering, he clutched the jacket giving him warmth tighter around his body.

Wait... _Jacket?_

Shooting up, Ryoma winced and gently massage his neck as he stared curiously down at the jacket that was curled up in his lap. Ryoma gently held it up to glance at it in the light and his eyes widened. It was undeniable... This jacket was one of the Night Class'_s_! But who in the world would do something like this...?

Shaking his head, Ryoma moaned and huffed. He didn't want to deal with annoying mysterious and wild goose chases right now. But, he didn't necessarily have to go return this to whoever...

Ryoma's face twisted into annoyance as the realization dawned on him.

...Leaving a jacket around him... Now there was only one person on the Night Class that he was that 'close' to... And who would stalk him all the way up a tree and observe him long enough to notice he was cold. A _certain_ brunette pureblood...

_Great..._

Ryoma unconsciously had started to rub his thumb against the smooth fabric and after pondering for a few moments, decided that it was too cold for his liking. Grabbing the jacket, the hunter boy curled underneath it again (well curled as best as he could with the damn throbbing injury on his dangling leg that they just had to put an annoying bandage over). A content look flickered over Ryoma's face before his muscles relaxed completely and he drifted back into sleep.

Eh, he'll drop it off later. For now, Fuji wouldn't miss it too much. After all, he was the one who put it here in the first place. Plus, it smelled refreshing just like Fuji...

"Sweet dreams, Ryo-chan."

_Chuu._

(X X X X X)

I decided to use "chuu" instead of "kiss" because well I thought "chuu" sounded nicer... (^^)" Hope I got it right... Anyways, I'll leave it up to your imagination whether that kiss was on the lips, cheeks, nose, etc. :)

The whole Rikkaidai scene was hard because I'm not too great on their characterization. Please forgive any mistakes and please alert me to them or if you have any suggestions; I would really appreciate it.

Thank you for reading!

(Oh, and if anyone has ideas for fluff scenes, I'd be happy to work them in :) )


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